Man, 55, Robbed and Killed After Winning Big at Southern California Casino

(Sept. 3) -- Fate, it seems, often turns on a dime.

Hours after winning thousands of dollars in a jackpot at a California gambling hall, a 55-year-old man was followed from the casino, robbed, run over and killed by another man who fled the scene, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Police in Santa Ana, Calif., responded to a 911 call around 5:30 this morning. Residents said they heard screams for help from a woman who was accompanying the victim in his red Honda from the Hawaiian Gardens Casino. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, casino, known as The Gardens, specializes in card games.

Santa Ana police investigators look on as the coroner from the Orange County Sheriffs Department examines a body found in Santa Ana, Calif. on Friday.

Bruce Chambers, The Orange County Register / AP

Police look on as a coroner from the Orange County Sheriff's Department examines a body found in Santa Ana, Calif. Police say the victim was robbed and killed after hitting it big at a Southern California casino.

Police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna told CBS News that the killer followed the victim in another car, cut him off on South Andres Place and then the two men got into a fight over the money.

According to the woman who was with the victim, the assailant ran over the jackpot winner and then drove away. The woman was unharmed.

The victim's name was being withheld because police had not yet been able to notify his family. An autopsy will be performed to determine the exact cause of death.

Police do not have a sketch of the suspect, who left a knife at the scene of the crime. They are asking for help from the public