21-year-old passenger dies in suspected DUI crash on Chula Vista highway

A 21-year-old woman died after the car she was riding in swerved off a Chula Vista highway Wednesday in a suspected DUI crash, California Highway Patrol officials said.

The woman was riding as a passenger in a white Nissan driven by a 20-year-old man east on state Route 54 near Highland Avenue when the vehicle veered off the road, struck a sign and then crashed down a dirt embankment around 12:55 a.m., Officer Kimberly Gonzalez said.

The woman was taken to a hospital, where she died, Gonzalez said. Her name was not released pending notification of her family.

The alleged driver, Caleb Antonio Pacheco, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of a drug and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, according to the CHP and jail booking records.