Porterville Police: man stabs ex-girlfriend, dies in high-speed crash

PORTERVILLE, Calif. (KFSN) -- A man, who police say, stabbed his ex-girlfriend died in a crash after chasing her through the streets of Porterville.

Jose Viveros, 37, was behind the wheel when he hit a tree on Main Street. The victim was found about a block away, alive but wounded.

Porterville police say Viveros was chasing his ex-girlfriend, trying to run her off the road, when he lost control and slammed into a tree.

A female witness, who didn't want to be identified, heard the impact from her apartment.

"Immediately woke me up," she said. "My heart was pounding just from the sound."

She ran downstairs to help, but Viveros was already dead.

The woman he was chasing was down the street and her car hit a cement wall.

The ex-girlfriend was hurt from the crash but had also been stabbed, and she was taken to the hospital.

Officers followed a trail of debris back to her home three miles away, which is where authorities say the violence started.

"Very, very sad situation," Sgt. Rick Carillo with the Porterville Police Department said. "She found him inside her home with a knife. The two then began to struggle and she was able to disarm the suspect and flee."

Back on Main Street Angel Morales says he grew up with Viveros in Richgrove.

"Shock, can't believe it," he said. "Because that's not him."

He says Viveros was always happy. He was a father of two and the woman was the mother of his kids.

It's not clear what led up to the attack, but investigators say they weren't living together and their relationship had just ended after 11 years.

"Very strange," Morales said. "Can't imagine what he was thinking or going through at the time."

As for the victim, she was released from the hospital and police say she will be ok.

Resources available for victims of domestic violence: http://www.thehotline.org/ and https://www.mmcenter.org/