Driver identified in video of SUV sailing off a cliff
CHP says woman’s identity has been confirmed through match of her DNA
SAN MATEO COUNTY » Five months after a dark green Lexus SUV was caught on camera hurtling over a cliff south of Gray Whale Cove in San Mateo County, authorities finally have identified the person who they believe was behind the wheel of the vehicle.
The California Highway Patrol on Wednesday said the driver was San Francisco resident Tracey Ivori Sinclair.
Mystery long has swirled around the incident, first reported to the CHP the morning of Dec. 30. Some even questioned the authenticity of a dashcam video from a passing motorist that showed the vehicle racing along the shoulder of Highway 1, driving up an embankment and briefly going airborne before plunging into the ocean below.
Authorities searched the area but found no immediate trace of the SUV or the driver.
“Although lacking sufficient information to positively identify the driver at the time of the incident, San Francisco CHP investigators remained determined and vigilant to solve the case and bring proper closure to surviving family and friends,” the CHP said in a news release.
The CHP said human remains and Sinclair’s driver’s license were found at nearby Montara State Beach over a period of several months.
A California Department of Motor Vehicles records check also revealed that Sinclair was the registered owner of a 2007 Lexus SUV.
A missing- persons report filed by Sinclair’s family and a DNA match confirmed by the San Mateo County Ccroner’s office provided the remaining circumstantial evidence to indicate that Sinclair had been the driver of the vehicle caught on camera, the CHP said.
“The San Francisco area CHP would like to express our heartfelt condolences to the victim’s family and friends,” the CHP said.
“We would also like to extend our sincere gratitude to our allied agencies whose efforts greatly contributed to the outcome of this investigation. Finally, we would like to thank the public for your support, patience and assistance throughout this ongoing process.”
Sinclair worked as an executive recruiter and earned a bachelor’s degree in biological and physical sciences from UC Davis in 1989, according to a LinkedIn page in her name.