Man posted photos of drug use before crash that killed 7-year-old, grandma, officials say
Nearly four years after a 7-year-old and her grandmother were killed in a DUI crash, the driver has been convicted, California officials say.
A jury convicted Jacob Anthony Caliboso, 25, of two second-degree murder charges in the death of Elva Andrade and her granddaughter, Nevaeh Gomez, the Ventura County District Attorney’s office said in an April 30 news release.
An attorney representing Caliboso did not immediately return McClatchy News’ request for comment on May 1. Caliboso pleaded not guilty in February 2021, according to a news release from the district attorney’s office.
Andrade was riding her motorcycle with her granddaughter down Pleasant Valley Road near Oxnard on June 22, 2020, prosecutors said.
As Caliboso was driving “high on Xanax pills and marijuana,” he crossed into oncoming traffic and struck the motorcycle head-on, prosecutors said.
Andrade died on scene, while her granddaughter was taken to a hospital, where she died the following day, prosecutors said.
A California Highway Patrol investigation showed Caliboso was driving 55 miles per hour and didn’t brake before the crash, according to prosecutors.
Investigators also found more than 1,000 videos and photos on Snapchat that showed Caliboso “using large amounts of drugs and driving in the weeks leading up to the crash,” prosecutors said.
On the day of the fatal crash, prosecutors said, “Caliboso posted nearly a dozen photos or videos of his drug use on Snapchat.”
Some of these social media posts were shown to the jury to argue Caliboso chose “to engage in dangerous conduct and was indifferent to the consequences,” prosecutors said.
“After four long years, Elva and Nevaeh’s family have received the justice they deserve,” Deputy District Attorney Stephanie Leija said in the release.
As the verdict was read in court, Andrea Jimenez, Andrade’s daughter and Nevaeh’s mother, “sat in the front row,” the Ventura County Star reported.
“My daughter, Nevaeh, and my mom, Elva, are together in heaven,” Jimenez told the newspaper. “The moment I heard the verdict of guilty, all I thought about was them at peace.”
Caliboso, who is held without bail, is expected to appear in court on June 11 for sentencing.
Oxnard is about a 60-mile drive northwest from Los Angeles.
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