Suspected Drunk Driver Dies After Chase Ends in Fatal Crash

A 23-year-old suspected drunk driver who led sheriff’s deputies on an 80-m.p.h. chase through Norwalk was fatally injured early Wednesday when he lost control of his car and it smashed into a tree, authorities said.

Ruben Veliz Carrera of Norwalk was in full cardiac arrest when he was taken to Norwalk Community Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:12 a.m., said Sgt. Robert Stoneman, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Carrera was “weaving erratically” while eastbound on Alondra Boulevard near Pioneer Boulevard when deputies tried to stop him at about 12:40 a.m., Stoneman said.

“At that point, the suspect’s car took off and reached speeds of 80 m.p.h. within a two-mile stretch,” Stoneman said.

At Alondra and Cornet Street, Carrera, who was apparently not wearing a seat belt, appeared to lose control of the car, which went up on a center divider, sheared off a light pole and struck a tree, Stoneman said.

“The right door of the car was knocked open on impact and the driver was thrown from the car,” Stoneman said. “The car continued for another 200 feet.”