On the night of December 13, police in a fiery crash resulted in one man’s death and a designated driver being arrested by police in Torrey Pines, California on suspicion of driving under the influence.
The victim was southbound in a Volkswagen Passat on North Torrey Pines Road shortly before 10 p.m. when a man driving an Infinity G35 rear-ended him, according to San Diego police Detective Dan Wall.
Wall said the VW was slowing while approaching the intersection with Genesee Avenue and the Infiniti approached “like a bullet down the road.”
The collision ruptured the VW’s gas tank, resulting in both cars being engulfed in flames.
An employee at nearby University of California-San Diego witnessed the crash and broke the windows of the Infiniti to extract the driver and a passenger. Wall said he was unable to get the VW’s driver out.
The Infiniti’s driver, 30-year-old San Diego resident Michael Landri, was arrested on suspicion of DUI and booked into county jail, where he was being held on $160,000 bail and faces charges of gross vehicular manslaughter, among other charges.
According to Wall, Landri and his passenger were “very drunk” and leaving an employee Christmas party.