Crime & Safety
East County Man Killed In Crash Involving Stolen SUV ID'd: Police
K-9 units were dispatched to look for other possible victims as officers were unsure if the man was the vehicle's only occupant.
LAKESIDE, CA – Authorities Monday publicly identified a 27-year-old man who was killed over the weekend when the stolen SUV he was in crashed on a rural road near San Vicente Reservoir.
California Highway Patrol personnel responding to the accident in the 11000 block of Moreno Avenue in Lakeside found Lance Xavier Christian of El Cajon partially ejected from and pinned underneath an overturned 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe shortly after 4 a.m. Sunday, according to the CHP and the county Medical Examiner's Office.
Paramedics pronounced Christian dead at the scene.
Find out what's happening in Santeefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Investigators believe the Tahoe, which had been reported stolen in September, was traveling to the north when it veered off the road, hit a tree and toppled onto its side, CHP public-affairs Officer Travis Garrow said.
Since Christian had been thrown partway out of the vehicle, it was unclear if he had been the driver, or if someone else might have been behind the wheel and fled prior to the arrival of emergency crews, Garrow said.
Find out what's happening in Santeefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
----------------
PREVIOUS: MONDAY, JAN. 28, 9:52 a.m.
A man riding in a stolen car was killed in a crash in Lakeside early Sunday morning, police said.
Someone called California Highway Patrol dispatchers just after 4 a.m. to report hearing a traffic collision near the intersection of Moreno and San Vicente avenues.
Officers arriving at the scene found that a 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe reported stolen in September had overturned onto its side, pinning a partially ejected occupant underneath, CHP Officer Travis Garrow said.
Firefighters were able to extract the person, a 27-year-old man, but he was pronounced dead at the scene due to his injuries, Garrow said.
Officers believe the Tahoe was heading north on Moreno Avenue before traveling out of control into the oncoming lane and hitting a tree near the road edge. The man killed in the crash apparently was not restrained at the time.
Garrow said because the victim was partially ejected, investigators can't yet say for certain whether he was the only person in the car.
San Diego County Sheriff's Lt. Karla Menzies said the CHP initially requested sheriff's dog units for assistance in tracking, but had no further information.
The CHP does not believe drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash, Garrow said.
--City News Service/Shutterstock image
