Westminster man charged with murder in Fountain Valley crash

SANTA ANA — A man pleaded not guilty Monday on a murder charge stemming from a crash last fall in Fountain Valley that killed a 25-year-old woman.

Jonathan Truong St. Thomas, 24, of Westminster was charged with a single count of murder on July 2 and was arrested Thursday. St. Thomas was ordered to return to court for a pretrial hearing Wednesday.

St. Thomas is accused of killing Melanie Barlow of Fountain Valley in a crash on Magnolia Street and Mint Avenue about 11:35 p.m. on Oct. 13, according to court records.

The prosecutor who filed the charges, Deputy District Attorney Dan Feldman, was not immediately available for comment, and Fountain Valley police referred calls to the district attorney’s media relations office.

As police were investigating the crash, another man drove a pickup truck through the barricades, police said. Matthew Earl Snoyman, 34, of Westminster, then allegedly did a U-turn and drove at the officers at the crash scene, triggering an officer-involved shooting.

Snoyman is awaiting trial on charges of drunken driving and assault on a peace officer.