SAN DIEGO – A man accused of intentionally running down and killing a bicyclist in Mira Mesa pleaded not guilty to murder on Wednesday. Marcos Garcia Jeronimo, 22, is also charged with a special allegation of using a car as a deadly weapon. Bail was set at $1 million.

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 10.

Investigators say Jeronimo and the victim had an ongoing feud, part of which involved a woman.

The identity of the victim, a young man believed to be a Mexican national, has not been released. San Diego police are working with the Mexican consulate to find the victim's family and verify his identity, said San Diego homicide Lt. Kevin Rooney.

Deputy District Attorney Patrick Ojeil said the victim's bike was directly in front of Jeronimo's car in a parking lot on Capricorn Way on Aug. 20.

Jeronimo “accelerated his vehicle and drove over the body,” Ojeil said.

Jeronimo continued driving, dragging the victim and bike 500 feet under his red Dodge Neon onto the street.

He then stopped the car, with the victim still pinned beneath, and ran away. The victim died at the scene.

Police searched around the county for Jeronimo in the days that followed, checking places he used to live and fast-food restaurants in San Diego and San Marcos where he worked.

On Saturday, he turned himself over to Oceanside police.

His 20-year-old brother was arrested a day earlier on suspicion of being an accessory to murder for helping Jeronimo elude authorities, Rooney said.

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