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Teenage Driver Killed In Petaluma Hit & Run Crash; Suspect Arrested

PETALUMA (CBS SF) - A teenage driver was killed in a hit and run crash on a rural road in Petaluma early Monday morning, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Hours later, a man was arrested in connection with the crash.

The 2-car crash was reported around 12:15 a.m. near Lakeville and Old Lakeville roads in Petaluma, according to the CHP.

CHP Sgt. Diana McDermott said the suspect was driving a 1969 Ford pickup truck along the roadway when he swerved over the centerline and slammed head-on into a 1985 GMC pickup truck.

Officers arriving on the scene found the teen driver of the GMC unconscious. He was later pronounced dead. The coroner's office identified him as 17-year-old Jahzeel Forsen of American Canyon.

The driver of the second vehicle apparently fled the scene on foot, according to witnesses.

CHP Officer Jon Sloat said the registered owner of the Ford was identified as 41-year-old Michael Scott Harmon, of Vallejo. Harmon matched the description of the man seen running from the scene of the crash, Sloat said.

Harmon contacted the Rohnert Park-area CHP by phone at 10 a.m.  He was brought in for questioning and was later arrested, Sloat said.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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