Man arrested in connection with Cupertino crash that killed 8-year-old

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Sunday, February 8, 2015
An 8-year-old girl died and her mother and brother were injured in crash on Highway 85 in Cupertino, Calif. on April. 21, 2014.
An 8-year-old girl died and her mother and brother were injured in crash on Highway 85 in Cupertino, Calif. on April. 21, 2014.
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CUPERTINO, Calif. (KGO) -- Police have arrested a man on murder charges in connection with a car crash that took the life of a young girl in Cupertino last year.

On April 21, around 3:30 p.m., CHP officers say a woman was driving a Volvo sports utility vehicle on state Highway 85, south of Stelling Road in Cupertino.

An 8-year-old girl died and her mother and brother were injured in crash on Highway 85 in Cupertino, Calif. on April. 21, 2014.

The woman stopped her car on the right shoulder of the highway to attend to her daughter, who CHP officers identified as Megan Yang.

CHP officers said 58-year-old Louis Bernabei Jr. was driving a 2001 Jeep Wrangler on the right shoulder of the highway at a high rate of speed when he rear-ended the Volvo.

An 8-year-old girl died and her mother and brother were injured in crash on Highway 85 in Cupertino, Calif. on April. 21, 2014.

Yang died in the collision. Her mother and brother were injured.

CHP officers said it was only recently determined that Bernabei had methadone in his system at the time of the collision. Authorities say the doctor who prescribed the methadone reportedly instructed Bernabei not to drive while taking it.

On Friday, CHP officers served Bernabei with an arrest warrant and took him into custody on suspicion of felony charges for murder and driving under the influence of drugs causing great bodily injury or death.

ABC7 News contributed to this report.