Man killed in freeway crash

Nicholas Samaniego, 21, died instantly when the car he was driving crashed into the trailer of a freight liner.

At about 4 a.m. Sat., Feb. 10 Samaniego, a resident of San Pedro, was driving his 1997 Toyota Corolla northbound on the 101 Freeway south of Moorpark Road in Thousand Oaks.

For an unknown reason, he allowed his car to drift off the road onto the right shoulder of the freeway and hit the trailer, according to a CHP report.

The impact fatally injured Samaniego, who was pronounced dead at the scene by Ventura County Fire Department personnel, the report said.

"He died instantly of blunt force head injury," said Armando Chavez, Ventura County senior deputy medical examiner.

Mahir Farah Gharib, 51, of Arcadia was seated in the parked 2005 freight liner but wasn't injured, according to the CHP report.

"He was just a hardworking kid," Art Samaniego said of his nephew Nicholas. "He was hoping to someday get his captain's license. He liked driving boats."

Samaniego is survived by his parents, Armando and Marie Samaniego, and his sisters, Jennifer, 19, and Michelle, 18.

- Nancy Needham