A woman in her 70s and an 88-year-old man were killed Sunday afternoon in Signal Hill when a driver hit their vehicle at high speed, according to authorities.
Signal Hill police said the driver who caused the crash appeared to be driving under the influence of alcohol.
He was on Cherry Avenue near Spring Street at around 5:30 p.m. when he rear-ended the other vehicle “at a high rate of speed, causing it to collide with a tree,” Lt. Kelli Crigler said in an email.
The man and woman in the vehicle that was hit both died at the scene, police said. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner identified the man as Sheldon Turchin. The woman hasn’t yet been publicly identified.
Crigler said officers arrested the driver responsible for the crash after he “exhibited symptoms of intoxication.” He was booked into jail on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, DUI causing injury, felony hit-and-run and driving on a suspended or revoked license.
Crigler said he also had five warrants out for his arrest. Details about the warrants weren’t immediately available.
Police identified him as Juan Pedro Fernandez Aguilar, 25.
He and the passenger in his car suffered minor injuries, Crigler said.