A family in San Jose, California, is mourning their 6-year-old son King Holguin, a nonverbal and autistic child who was fatally struck by a car Friday, Dec. 13, on Interstate 280, per ABC 7 News.
King was two weeks shy of his seventh birthday when he died.
“I just want to hold him,” the boy’s father, who was not identified, told the outlet Monday. “I want him back, but I know he is in a better place. He was always outgoing, loving and the house is quiet without him. But I know everyone misses him and I miss him.”
A news release from the California Highway Patrol obtained Wednesday by People confirmed a pedestrian “ran into the number three lane” of the northbound interstate that night and was struck by a 2024 Nissan Altima driven by a 36-year-old San Jose local.
The pedestrian was pronounced dead at a hospital, the news release confirmed, and was identified as King by the Santa Clara Medical Examiner. His parents are now hoping to contact the driver — to assure him that it wasn’t his fault, they told ABC 7 News.
King’s primary daycare provider, Solis Sisneros, told the outlet that he had a penchant for running off, particularly when it rained. His apartment on Parkmoor Avenue was reportedly not far from an entrance to the highway.
“He got out in the middle of the night when everyone was asleep — locked the door behind him, left his iPad,” Sisneros told ABC7 News. “He just went out, you know. Everybody was looking for him, but we’d never expect him to be on the freeway, though.”
“I wish I was there for him that night and I just want to apologize to him,” his father added.
The medical examiner confirmed in an email to People that King died accidentally from multiple blunt trauma force injuries resulting from the collision. The boy’s family told KRON 4 that he didn’t fully understand traffic and the gravity of the danger it can pose.
His mother, Victoria Olivas, told KTVU that King managed to thwart the child safety locks at home and said she only noticed he was gone after he had already left.
Lydia Holguin, a relative, has since created a GoFundMe in order to help finance his burial.
“Our hearts are very heavy, we would do anything to get more time with him,” the fundraiser page reads. “King was very outgoing, energetic, adventurous, stubborn, loving boy who loved to play and run around all the time. He had tons of energy.”
The Cambrian School District shared the news in an open letter to the community Monday, offering “thoughts and heartfelt condolences” to King’s family and friends. The late 6-year-old was a student at Bagby Elementary School In San Jose, per KTVU.