YUCCA VALLEY MAN ACCUSED IN HIT AND RUN DEATH IN DESERT HOT SPRINGS

CHP investigators arrested a Yucca Valley man after a hit-and-run that killed a pedestrian on North Indian Canyon Drive Saturday night. The California Highway Patrol said Michael Bettasso, 39, was driving a Nissan Sentra northbound on North Indian Canyon Drive, north of Dillon Road, at about 7:30 p.m.; 63-year-old Richard Helton, was walking along the eastern side of North Indian Canyon Drive, when he was struck by Bettaso’s vehicle, who then drove away from the scene. The collision was reported about 12 hours later. Emergency crews responded at 7:20 a.m. Sunday where they found Helton’s body near the roadway. Helton’s 1988 Chevrolet 3500 pickup with camper attached was located on North Indian Canyon Drive, south of the collision. Investigators said evidence and witnesses identified Bettasso as the suspect. Officers responded to his home on Victoria Avenue in Yucca Valley where the Nissan was located. Michael Bettasso was arrested on suspicion of felony hit-and-run at about 8:40 p.m. on Sunday. Bettasso was booked at the Riverside County Jail in Indio on $1 million bail. He’s due at the Larson Justice Center on tomorrow, July 7, for his first court appearance. The CHP said alcohol and/or drugs may have been a factor in the collision. Anyone with information is asked to call the Indio CHP Office at 760-772-8911 and ask for Officer Johnson.