Fatal Crash Pilot Was Not A Cop, Had Fake Police Credentials

YORBA LINDA, CA — Though authorities initially said the pilot who died when his Cessna crashed into a California neighborhood on Sunday was a retired Chicago police officer, police are now saying Antonio Pastini, 75, was not an officer and was carrying false CPD credentials. The crash claimed the lives of four people inside a home as they reportedly attended a Super Bowl party.

Police in California say Chicago Police Department officials have no record of Pastini working there, but Orange County sheriff's deputies found a Chicago Police Department badge and retirement papers on him. "He had credentials on him, though they were not legitimate," an Orange County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Carrie Braun said.

Pastini was the owner of a Gardnerville, Nevada sushi bar and restaurant, City News Service has said. Pastini's Facebook page said he was originally from Chicago and attended Warren Township High School. He was reportedly flying from Nevada to visit relatives in Southern California.

Pastini's daughter, Julie Ackley, told reporters that she had tried to call her father prior to the crash, "but the only call I got was from the sheriff's department ... He's been flying for over 50 years, and this was a horrible tragedy and a freak accident." Ackley also told NBC4 that her father was born under a different name, Jordan Isaacson, and also has a twin brother.

Yorba Linda Plane Crash Sparks House Fire, Kills 5 People: Photos

The individuals killed in the Yorba Linda home — two males and two females, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Department — were not immediately identified as the Orange County coroner works to notify their next of kin. According to the Orange County Fire Authority, two were killed in the crash and two others died from burns sustained in the resulting fire.

Pastini was flying the aircraft out of Fullerton Municipal Airport on Sunday afternoon when it made a sudden decline 10 minutes after takeoff, said National Transportation Safety Board Investigator Eliott Simpson.

Radar data indicated that the plane made a left turn and climbed to 7,800 feet, according to Simpson. Witnesses on the ground say the plane "nose-dived" to the ground, and the wings fell off before it struck the ground, NTSB investigator Maja Smith said. Other parts of the aircraft landed across the neighborhood until the 1981 Cessna careened into a home on the 19000 block of Crestknoll Drive. Some witnesses said the aircraft exploded before it crashed.

Authorities said the plane was climbing when it made a sudden, sharp descent and crashed into the neighborhood, causing the home to ignite. Witnesses said they saw several people escape the burning home, screaming for family members they could not find, according to ABC.

The National Transportation and Safety Board continues to investigate the cause of the crash, and a preliminary report was estimated to be released within two weeks. The investigation could take up to one year to complete, NTSB said.

Read more via Lake Forest, California Patch

Ashley Ludwig, Patch Staff, contributed to this report.

Photo via Orange County Fire Authority