Man ‘deliberately’ plows car through group of pedestrians in California

A man has been arrested after eye witnesses said he appeared to intentionally plowed his vehicle through a group of pedestrians on a California sidewalk.

The Sunnyvale Police Department has reportedly not yet ruled out possible terror motives behind the crash, which sent eight victims to the hospital Tuesday. The local police department contacted the FBI shortly after the evening crash, officials said.

“It looks like this may have been an intentional act by the driver, based upon what's on scene and also some statements of pain," Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety Captain Jim Choi told CBS News. He also told local news outlets that a preliminary investigation appeared to confirm the driver "deliberately drove into a group of eight pedestrians."

“We are conducting that investigation. We don't know what the motives were,” he added.

The eight victims included a 13-year-old and several of whom were in critical condition following the crash.

The driver was taken into custody after the car smashed into a tree.

Mr Choi said people on the sidewalk, as well as those crossing the street, were hit. He said it appears the pedestrians had the walk signal when they started crossing the intersection.

The victims told officials the car did not attempt to brake before hitting into them. The vehicle stopped after crashing into a tree.

Police are currently withholding the suspect’s identity pending an ongoing investigation.

Additional reporting by AP