Six-year sentence for drunk driving that killed father of six

A man who drove under the influence the wrong way on Interstate 805 in San Ysidro and crashed into another vehicle, killing the other driver, was sentenced this week to more than six years in state prison.

Fernando Goneortiz, 29, pleaded guilty to the July 26, 2023, crash that killed Abel Bermudez Griego, 57, a Los Angeles resident and father of six.

The crash occurred shortly before noon as Goneortiz’s Audi was traveling northbound in the southbound lanes of traffic near East San Ysidro Boulevard.

The San Diego Fire Department said the Audi crashed head-on into a minivan. The driver of the minibus, Bermudez Griego, died at the scene. Goneortiz was hospitalized for injuries sustained in the crash and was later arrested.

Goneortiz was sentenced Thursday in Chula Vista Superior Court to six years in prison for intoxicated manslaughter, plus six months for misdemeanor driving on the wrong side of the highway.

A GoFundMe page set up to raise money for the victim’s family said Bermudez Griego was traveling to Ensenada this weekend to visit his mother. Her six children ranged in age from 10 to 40 at the time of her death, according to the page.