Yesterday, tragedy struck on a Carlsbad street when a 23-year-old woman from San Diego was killed in a traffic collision. The City of Carlsbad Police Department reported that the incident occurred at 12:37 a.m. on the 2200 block of Las Palmas Drive, where a Volkswagen Jetta, operated at what appeared to be a high rate of speed, crashed into three cars and a pedestrian. The pedestrian, who had recently exited her vehicle, succumbed to fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Following the collision, Jose Manuel Zambrano Cruz, the 26-year-old Carlsbad resident driving the Volkswagen, abandoned the scene hastily. He was later apprehended in the 6600 block of El Camino Real. According to the official Facebook post by the Carlsbad Police Department, Zambrano Cruz now faces charges including Felony Hit and Run, DUI Causing Injury or Death, and Vehicular Manslaughter, and has been booked into the Vista Detention Facility.
Witness testimony suggests the Volkswagen was traveling eastbound on Las Palmas Drive when it struck the vehicles and pedestrians. The local authorities have hinted at alcohol being a possible contributor to the crash, although the full investigation into the cause is still ongoing. The identity of the deceased has not been made public, and notification of next of kin is pending.
The City of Carlsbad Police Department continues to appeal for additional witnesses who might have further information about this distressing event. They urge anyone who knows anything to come forward and have provided contact details for Traffic Accident Investigator Corporal Matt Bowen at [email protected].
