A man driving a Tesla sedan was going over 100 mph and ran a red light before the car crashed, killing him and two of his passengers over the weekend in Pasadena, police said.
A 17-year-old Pasadena girl, an 18-year-old Monrovia woman and a 20-year-old Pasadena man who were injured in the Saturday crash remained in the hospital on Monday, Pasadena police Lt. Anthony Russo said.
Police believe the autopilot feature was not on at the time, he said.
The medical examiner’s office identified two of the people killed as Moheb Reda Samuel, 22, of Pasadena and Stefan Pfeiffer, 20, of Pasadena. The third person killed in the solo crash was only described as a man in his 20s.
Samuel and Pfeiffer died of multiple blunt-force traumatic injuries, according to the medical examiner’s office.
Samuel was driving the Tesla Model 3 sedan, Russo said. Pfeiffer sat in the back and the other man killed was the front passenger, he added.
Of the six people in the car, he said three wore seatbelts – the driver, the front passenger and one of the passengers sitting in the back.
“We know they recently charged the vehicle at a Hastings Ranch charging station,” he said. They were on their way home, Russo said.
Preliminary estimates showed the Tesla was traveling over 100 mph, according to the lieutenant.
The car was heading west on Foothill Boulevard and ran a red light on Sierra Madre Boulevard, he said. The driver failed to negotiate the curve and hit a curb on Foothill Boulevard, east of Vista Avenue, causing the car to go airborne. The Tesla struck a street light, a power pole, a building then another street light, the lieutenant said.
Three of the four people sitting in the back were ejected.
Police got a call about the crash at 2:38 a.m. on Saturday.
Related Articles
2 big rigs collide on 5 Freeway in Granada Hills-Sylmar area, 1 man critically burned
18 hospitalized, 37 treated at the scene after USC bus and Metro train collide in Exposition Park
5 killed in 2-car collision in the Antelope Valley
4 juveniles — ages 12 to 14 — injured and trapped in crash during sheriff’s chase in East LA
Studio City freeway crash that killed LA Fire Department recruit not classified as a hit-and-run
