A 68-year-old Aromas man died in a solo car crash Saturday, three days after being reported as a missing adult, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The victim, identified as Edward Gene Robbins, was pronounced dead at the scene when emergency personnel found him at 11:25 a.m. Saturday. He had been driving a 1991 Honda eastbound on Highway 156 west of Merrill Road along the Highway 101 on-ramp. The car ran off the right shoulder for an unknown reason, traveled down a hill and rolled two times, according to the CHP.
The CHP is continuing its investigation regarding circumstances leading up to the man’s death. A report from the San Benito County Coroner’s Office should determine an estimated time of death, according to a spokesman for the CHP, Officer Herb Kellogg.
Kellogg said there is a “pretty good size hill” at the location, where a passer-by reported seeing the accident at some point after it had occurred. The first report came in at 11:21 a.m., minutes before emergency responders arrived.
The CHP reported that the man had been reported missing Jan. 1, but Kellogg could not provide further information regarding the missing person’s report.
“They didn’t see anything,” Kellogg said of the passer-by. “They just saw the vehicle there.”
Capt. Tony Lamonica with the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office, which acts as county coroner, confirmed the man’s identity Tuesday. Lamonica said the autopsy could occur within days, but that the office would not have a report for a couple of weeks.
