Crash, shooting victim had gang past, police say

By Tamara Barak and Lara Moscrip

May 29, 2007

A man who died following a shooting and vehicle crash in San Francisco's Sunset District on Monday morning was once a suspected leader of a notorious Chinatown gang, police confirmed this morning.

It remains unclear today whether Simon Ruan, 32, died due to the shots that were fired at his vehicle or due to injuries he suffered in the resulting crash, San Francisco police Sgt. Neville Gittens said.

The San Francisco medical examiner's office reported this morning that Ruan's body has not yet been examined.

Gittens said he didn't know whether Ruan, who was a Pittsburg resident at the time of his death, was still a gang member. In the late 1990s, police considered Ruan a major player in the Jackson Street Boys, a gang with a history of alleged violence and extortion.

While the Police Department's gang task force has been advised of Ruan's death, there is no evidence that the shooting was gang-related, Gittens said.

"It could have been road rage," Gittens said.

Police believe the incident began at 1:55 a.m. Monday at a stop sign in the 1300 block of Funston Avenue. Ruan and his female passenger were sitting in a car when a vehicle pulled up next to them and someone began shooting, police reported. Ruan sped away and crashed, flipping his vehicle and becoming partially ejected, police reported. He was pronounced dead about a half an hour later, authorities said.

Ruan's passenger was hospitalized in stable condition after the crash and is expected to survive, police reported.

Police have made no arrests in the case, Gittens said.

Copyright © 2007 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.

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