Santa Ana Driver Arrested in Crash That Killed Friend
An 18-year-old Santa Ana man who was a passenger in a speeding car was killed when his friend lost control and veered into an oak tree on Santiago Canyon Road early Saturday, California Highway Patrol officials said.
Victor “Rudi” Giles was pronounced dead at the scene of the 3:35 a.m. accident, a dispatcher said.
Mario Alamilla was driving about 80 mph on southbound Santiago Canyon Road just north of Live Oak Canyon Road when he was startled by oncoming headlights, a dispatcher said.
Alamilla, also 18 and from Santa Ana, veered to the right, and struck a curb before the car came to rest with the roof crushed against a tree.
It took firefighters more than two hours to cut Alamilla and Giles from the wreckage with the Jaws of Life.
Alamilla was taken to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo, where a nursing supervisor said Saturday that he was undergoing surgery for a broken hand.
He was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, according to the dispatcher.
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