Full Notification

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: 12/23/16
Contact: Agent Rowbotham 619-476-5321

Vehicle Collision Results in Fatality/ Possible Alcohol Related

On 12/23/16, at approximately 4:02 PM, the Chula Vista Police Department received a 911 call reporting a minor Hit and Run traffic accident near at the intersection of Broadway and I St. The suspect fled the scene in his White Honda Civic. The reporting party followed the suspect eastbound on I St. while calling police. The suspect then crashed into an unoccupied parked car near First Ave and I St. The driver and only occupant of the vehicle fleeing the Hit and Run was killed. No other persons were injured.

The preliminary investigation at the scene which included several witnesses, indicate the suspect was involved in a minor property damage only collision and fled the scene at a high rate of speed while being followed by a witness.

While fleeing the driver ran a stop sign at high speed and drove onto the wrong side of the road near First Ave and I St. He struck a parked pickup truck. Officers from the Chula Vista Police Department and Firefighters from the Chula Vista Fire Department worked to extricate the driver who was trapped inside the vehicle and not breathing. CPR was preformed and he was transported to a trauma center where he later succumbed to his injuries.

Officers at the scene observed an open container of alcohol in the vehicle, and the passenger compartment of the vehicle smelled of an alcoholic beverage. It is not yet known if alcohol played a role in the collision. The driver was a 36-year-old Chula Vista Resident.

The Chula Vista Police Traffic Division will be continuing to investigate this incident.

Please contact the Chula Vista Police Department (619)691-5151 if you have any information regarding this collision.