Father Says Son Killed In Tesla Crash Only Used Autopilot On Highway
CASTRO VALLEY -- The father of the young man killed in deadly Tesla crash in Castro Valley over the weekend on Monday night remembered his son as "a nice kid" and a good student.
The crash happened on a dark and windy road. Authorities said on Monday the crash may have taken place on Saturday or Sunday evening as the victim was driving between Castro Valley and San Ramon.
The driver was killed after careening off the road and through a fence and plunging into a pond.
Authorities are investigating whether the car was in Autopilot mode.
34-year-old victim Keith Leung was an accomplished musician. His father, Tak Leung, said his son had finished performing with an orchestra for a musical in Foster City. He was driving to his home in Danville when the accident happened.
Tak Leung got the call Monday morning from authorities that his son had been killed in an accident.
Authorities said the Tesla he was driving veered off Crow Canyon Road and went into a pond on private property.
The Alameda County Sheriff's Department said their dive team spent hours between Sunday night -- when the vehicle was first discovered -- and early Monday morning getting to the Tesla Model S submerged in the pond.
That was when divers pulled Leung's body out of the water.
"We have never dealt with a submerged car, an electric car, like that before," said Alameda County Sheriff's Sgt. Ray Kelly. "We took some precautions to make sure our divers were safe when they touched the car."
Tak Leung said his son was a talented musician. He showed KPIX 5 his son's closet full of different instruments he played.
"He was driving from Foster City to home," Leung said. "He is a nice kid. And so good in school. I never had to worry about his schooling."
CHP officials said drivers often speed through windy Crow Canyon Road.
But investigators don't know yet what caused the crash or if the Tesla was in Autopilot mode.
Leung said he only recalls his son driving the Tesla in autopilot on the highway and didn't think he would be using the mode on Crow Canyon.
"When he starts going to the local streets, he would turn it off," Leung said.
