The coroner has identified a 19-year-old man who died after police say he drove recklessly and crashed head-on into another vehicle, seriously injuring its driver, in Zion Friday.
An autopsy performed Monday showed that Andrew Gonzalez, 19, of Zion, died as a result of blunt force injuries from a vehicle crash, according to Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek.
The Zion Police Department received a driving complaint around 1:27 p.m. Friday in the area of 22nd Street and Lewis Avenue, according to Zion Police Lt. Derek Zaloudek.
A witness reported a vehicle was driving recklessly and provided dispatchers with a make, model, color and registration.
Officers responded to the area and began searching for the vehicle.
Another witness called at 1:39 p.m. and reported the same vehicle was driving recklessly through the Lorelei Acres subdivision, roughly two and a half miles northwest of the original location, Zaloudek said.
Officers responded to the area and learned at 1:47 p.m. that the suspect vehicle was involved in a vehicle crash in the 1500 block of Lewis Avenue, south of the intersection of 13th Street and Lewis Avenue.
The Zion Fire-Rescue Department and Winthrop Harbor Fire Department responded to the scene.
Officers arrived to find a two-vehicle head-on crash with injuries involving an SUV and a sedan.
Firefighters had to extricate one of the victims who was trapped in their vehicle.
Paramedics transported one victim to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville and another to Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan.
Zaloudek said the driver of the reckless vehicle, Gonzalez, died as a result of his injuries.
The driver of the other involved vehicle, a 38-year-old man, suffered serious injuries and has been stabilized at the hospital, Zaloudek said.
The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) was notified and responded to investigate.
Lewis Avenue was shut down between 13th Street and Route 173 for approximately four hours. It was reopened just before 6 p.m. Friday.
The crash remains under investigation by the Zion Police Department and MCAT.