Man accused of fatally running over pedestrian ‘multiple times’ at Bay Area mall faces mental competency report

A 26-year-old Fairfield man faces an August mental competency report in Solano County Superior Court in Fairfield, where he is accused of running over a victim “multiple times,” causing the person’s death, at the Solano mall in November last year, then fleeing the scene.

Vakautakava Fale Kaono Tangitau on Friday appeared in Department 1, where his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Matthew Adler, expressed to Judge Jeffrey C. Kauffman doubts of his client’s ability to aid in his own defense.

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The judge then suspended criminal proceedings against Tangitau, in accord with Penal Code section 1368, and appointed Jennifer Roman, a Napa-based clinical psychologist, to prepare the competency report.

Kauffman set the competency hearing, commonly called a “1368 doctor’s report,” for 9 a.m. Aug. 21 in the Justice Center in Fairfield.

Under the namesake Penal Code section, a defendant cannot be tried or punished if they are mentally incompetent. However, once competency is restored, a judge may reinstate criminal proceedings, including a jury trial.

The criminal complaint, filed Nov. 12, 2024, shows that Tangitau is charged with first-degree murder with a prior felony conviction and being a repeat offender. Deputy District Attorney Courtney Anderson leads the prosecution.

In a social media post, Fairfield police officials said at about 11:30 a.m. Nov. 7, a man was walking through the Solano Town Center’s northside parking lot when he “was struck by a person driving a white Dodge pickup truck.”

The driver, later identified as Tangitau, “proceeded to run over the victim multiple times, before fleeing in his vehicle,” according to the post’s wording.

A witness followed Tangitau while simultaneously reporting the crime to police dispatchers.

Officers responded immediately and stopped Tangitau in the 800 block of East Tabor Avenue, where he was taken into custody without incident.

Tangitau, who is known to officers due to previous mental health calls, was booked into jail later in the day. He remains in the Stanton Correctional Facililty without bail.

The Solano County Coroner on Tuesday again said the victim’s identity remained “protected,” and the Fairfield Police Department declined to provide information over the telephone. It was unclear if the victim’s relatives had been notified.