Car collides with concrete lamp post in golf course driveway
– California Highway Patrol officers are investigating the cause of single-car accident near San Juan Oaks Golf Club that took the life of a Hollister teen Tuesday morning.
Hugo Soto, 17, and his 23-year-old passenger, Areseli Dias, also of Hollister, in a 1987 Honda Accord on a private driveway that leads to the golf club early Tuesday morning in a patch of fog before running off the road, according to CHP Public Information Officer Chris Armstrong. The car collided with a concrete lamp post about 6:30am. Armstrong said the teen had been driving without a license. Soto was taken by ambulance to Hazel Hawkins Hospital, where he later died of his injuries. Dias was taken Saint Louise Hospital in Gilroy with moderate injuries. She was later taken to San Jose Regional Medical Center and was recovering, Armstrong said.
Both Dias and Soto were wearing seat belts at the time of the accident. Alcohol was not a factor, Armstrong said. No one witnessed the accident and it is unclear how fast Soto had been driving at the time. Investigation into the cause of the accident is ongoing, Armstrong said.
An autopsy report by the San Benito County Coroner’s Officer showed that Soto died of blunt force trauma, Undersheriff Pat Turturici said. Soto had worked as a migrant laborer near the golf course. The teen’s family and friends could not be reached for comment by press time on Thursday.
