Man drives off Encinitas bluff, action an apparent suicide

A man who drove his car off a bluff in Encinitas Aug. 6 appears to have done so intentionally, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

Using a face-time mobile phone app around 6:30 a.m., the unidentified man told his girlfriend that he wanted to commit suicide, said Sgt. Richard George of the Sheriff’s Department.

Authorities were informed of a car going off the bluff at 6:39 a.m. on the 400 block of 4th and H streets, George said.

The man drove the vehicle through the guard-rails, falling 80 feet before crashing, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

After being ejected, the driver was found lying motionless on the beach and pronounced dead at 7:06 a.m., George said, adding no one else was injured.

Because of wet sand and the approaching high tide, a forklift loader was used to remove the vehicle, George said.

The county Department of the Medical Examiner will identify the man and determine the exact cause of his death.