2 From San Jose Killed In Naval Air Station Lemoore Car Crash

KINGS COUNTY - Two San Jose residents were killed in a car crash at Naval Air Station Lemoore in Kings County following a pursuit with California Highway Patrol officers that started late Wednesday night.

They were identified as Anthony Castillo, 29, and Melissa Miller, 36, according to the Kings County Sheriff's Office.

Castillo was driving a 1997 purple Jeep Grand Cherokee seen by CHP officers on the shoulder of Jackson Avenue west of state Highway 41 at about 11:40 p.m. Wednesday, CHP Officer John Tyler said. The officers in a patrol car pulled up behind the Jeep to check on whoever was inside, but Castillo erratically drove away, Tyler said.

The officers tried to pull over the Jeep as it weaved and crossed the road's center line, according to Tyler.

Castillo continued west on Jackson Avenue, ran past a stop sign at Avenal Cutoff Road and went onto eastbound state Highway 198, Tyler said. The officers saw the suspect vehicle briefly travel the wrong way on the freeway, then cross the center divide, according to Tyler.

They lost sight of the Jeep, but soon after saw it east of Enterprise Avenue and continued their pursuit, Tyler said.

Castillo drove to Reeves Bypass before he entered the operations side of the air station, where officers lost track of the Jeep, according to Tyler.

A CHP helicopter crew monitored the suspect vehicle and relayed its location to officers on the ground, Tyler said.

The Jeep then crashed into the back of a parked F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter aircraft, according to Tyler.

Miller, a passenger in the Jeep, was pronounced dead at the scene and Castillo was transported to Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno, where he succumbed to his injuries, Tyler said.

Security personnel at the air station responded to the pursuit when the Jeep entered the operations area and helped the CHP helicopter crew from its air traffic control tower, air station spokesman Marcelo Calero said.

Investigators have not determined if drugs or alcohol played a role in the crash, according to Tyler.

-Bay City News; generic image of an F/A-18C parked at Lemoore NAS, California via Jerry Gunner and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.