Police are looking for the public’s help to find out how a young Morgan Hill man ended up with serious injuries that sent him to the hospital where he remains in critical condition.
Joshua Valdez, 22, was found lying unconscious near the intersection of San Pedro Avenue and Butterfield Boulevard about 1 a.m. Saturday, according to Morgan Hill police Sgt. Troy Hoefling. He was found by Morgan Hill officers responding to another call in the area. Valdez is orginally from Gilroy and graduated from Gilroy High School in 2008.
Valdez was breathing when police found him, Hoefling said. Paramedics arrived and determined he suffered injuries “most consistent with being hit by a car,” including a broken leg, broken pelvis, a head injury and fluid in his lungs.
He was transported to San Jose Regional Medical Center, where he remains in critical condition, Hoefling said.
“We are looking for anything and everything that could help,” Hoefling said in their search for information, and in a plea for help from any witnesses or passersby who might have seen or heard anything. “We’re going through everything we can to determine what may have happened to him.”
Officers have contacted Valdez’ family and friends who are the last known people to have seen him before he was injured.
Valdez was walking home from a friend’s house, Hoefling said. He parted ways with a friend near the intersection of Church Street and San Pedro Avenue, and continued walking east on San Pedro Avenue by himself.
Valdez’ mother also told police she last saw him about 11 p.m. Friday, when he left on foot for his friend’s house, Hoefling said. He made it to the friend’s house, from which he left about 12:30 a.m. to return home.
Police are even looking into the possibility that Valdez was followed on his way home, Hoefling said. However, the number and severity of the injuries strongly suggest an impact with a moving vehicle.
“He has a ton of internal injuries. Broken bones from top to bottom, and road rash,” Hoefling said.
The officers who found Valdez were in the area looking for a suspicious person reported by another caller, but they have determined that Valdez was not the suspect in question.
Friends and family have set up a Facebook page notifying those who know Valdez what happened to him, and updating his condition. Donations for his medical care can be made via a link on the Facebook page.
A prayer vigil is scheduled for Valdez tonight, 5 p.m. at the Morgan Hill Community and Cultural Center, 17000 Monterey Rd.
Anyone with information about the incident, or who saw anything suspicious in the area around the time he was injured can call Morgan Hill Police at (408) 779-2101.
