Mother of 3-year-old hit-and-run victim speaks out

The mother of a 3-year-old boy killed earlier this week in an apparent hit-and-run collision in Merced defended the man who was with her child the night he died.

Santos Alvarez, a 3-year-old Merced boy, died Monday, according to reports, after he was struck by a vehicle in the parking lot of a McDonald’s restaurant on West 13th Street. His mother, Sophoeun Alvarez, on Friday came to the defense of 23-year-old Jonathan Thao, the man who was watching her child that night.

Thao endured heavy criticism Thursday during a candlelight vigil held for the child. Relatives at the vigil told Thao the incident was his fault, questioned his version of the event and some openly accused Thao of “doing something to the baby.”

Alvarez, 37, said she was pleased the Alvarez family has rallied support and helped raise money for her son’s funeral, but that blaming Thao for the incident was not right.

“Everyone needs to quit blaming people. The only person to blame is the killer,” Alvarez said. “It’s not right blaming him or trying to intimidate him.”

Thao in an interview Friday with the Merced Sun-Star acknowledged changing his story a few times this week, misrepresenting his relationship with the child and the boy’s mother. He also acknowledged that he misspoke about certain facts in the case.

He said he never deliberately tried to conceal the truth or intentionally disclosed incorrect information. He said he was “under pressure” with family members accusing him of wrongdoing and “used the wrong words.”

“At (the vigil) I was in a moment where it was hard to explain things because of everything people were saying there,” Thao said. “I might have been irritated with some of things people were saying, and I may have answered a few things wrong.”

Thao on Thursday said he was Alvarez’s boyfriend, which is not true, and described the child as his son, which is also untrue. He acknowledged first describing the pickup truck allegedly involved in the incident as a Ford and then, later, as a Chevrolet. On Friday he said the truck was definitely a white Ford pickup.

All of those statements, he said, came in the heat of a pressure-packed moment and indicated he regretted any confusion it may have caused for the family and for police.

Alvarez also corrected reports from relatives that she did not attend Thursday’s vigil. She said she did come to the parking lot, but did not get out of the vehicle because she was too emotional.

Alvarez said she is grateful to both the Alvarez family and the Thao family for their support. She rents a room from Thao’s family and said the Thaos’ support over the last few months helped her through a difficult time trying to relocate to California.

She said she hopes people will understand Thao has been supportive of her family and that he simply made some mistakes.

“He just jumbled his thoughts under pressure, but the whole Thao family are wonderful people who have done so much for Santos,” Alvarez said. “It’s not right to blame anybody. It’s time that we just mourn the loss, not fight.”

Alvarez confirmed reports from other relatives that her husband, Santos’ father, Monte Alvarez is serving time in prison in Arizona. She did not want to say why he was behind bars or for how long, explaining that she only wanted to focus on her son.

Alvarez said she hopes everyone in the family can focus on the memory of her son and will continue helping to raise money for his funeral. She described losing her child as devastating and overwhelming.

“He comes up and wipes the tears off my face when I’m crying and says, ‘Don’t cry, mommy, tomorrow I’ll get you a toy,’” she said. “‘Santos’ means ‘saint,’ and he was my little saint.”

This story was originally published November 7, 2014 at 8:45 PM with the headline "Mother of 3-year-old hit-and-run victim speaks out."