By Shawn Hogendorf, Staff Writer 

A 20-year-old Faribault man pleaded guilty to one count of criminal vehicular homicide for leaving the scene of a fatal accident in connection with the hit- and-run crash that killed a Prior Lake man in the parking lot of the Event Center in Burnsville in April.

Armando Velasquez pleaded guilty to one count of criminal vehicular homicide in Dakota County Court late Monday. Judge Timothy McManus ordered that Velasquez be taken into custody while a pre-sentence investigation is being conducted. Velasquez is scheduled to be sentenced at 9 a.m. Oct. 10 in Hastings.

Burnsville police responded to a call of a fight or disturbance in the parking lot of the Event Center, 1998 Highway 13, at about 2 a.m. April 5. The call included information that Carlos Noriega of Prior Lake had been hit by a car.

Police believe the incident began when two groups were involved in a confrontation during a dance inside the Event Center. One group of five men and three women was from the Owatonna/Faribault area; the other group of about 12 people was from the Burnsville area.

The Velasquez brothers and their friends jumped into a red Mercury Marquis with distinctive, large chrome wheel rims and left the parking lot toward the Cliff Road exit, police said. Velasquez then made a U-turn, drove back through the parking lot, over a median and accelerated toward Noriega. The vehicle hit Noriega, throwing him in the air. The vehicle then sped out of the parking lot toward Highway 13.

When police arrived, they found Noriega lying in the parking lot of the Event Center, unresponsive and not breathing. Officers performed CPR on Noriega and were able to get his heart going before transporting him to Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, where he later died.

Investigators believe Noriega was walking to his truck in the parking lot around 2 a.m., when he was hit by a vehicle that then left the scene.

Police do not believe Noriega was involved in the fight.

Nine days after the incident, Burnsville police located the car that hit Noriega, hidden in a garage of a Faribault home where a friend of the Velasquez brothers lives.

According to police, the distinctive rims had been removed and disposed of. Police were able to later trace those rims to a purchase made by Velasquez and his mother’s boyfriend in Minneapolis. The front end of the car showed signs of hasty bodywork and sanding.

Two others who were arrested and charged in connection with the death of Noriega await court hearings.

Martina Narvaez, 36, of Owatonna, awaits a court hearing on the felony charges of aiding an offender for assisting Armando Velasquez in his attempt to avoid arrest. Her bail was reduced to $75,000 without conditions and $10,000 with conditions. Her next court appearance is at 9 a.m. Aug. 20 in Hastings.

Charges against Armando’s brother, Francisco Velazquez, 18, of Faribault, a third person police allege to be involved in the fatal hit and run, faces charges of aiding an offender, a felony. His bail remains $75,000 without conditions and $15,000 with conditions. He awaits a jury trial on Dec. 9 in Hastings.

 Shawn Hogendorf can be reached at (952) 345-6374 or shogendorf@swpub.com.