A late morning two-vehicle collision along Highway 120, west of Pioneer Avenue just outside Oakdale on Saturday, Dec. 21 left one driver under arrest and the second driver with fatal injuries.

At approximately 11:52 a.m., the California Highway Patrol received notification of the crash. Emergency personnel arrived on scene and located two vehicles with major collision damage. The preliminary investigation by the CHP indicates that Nicholas Anthony Martinez, 34, from Coulterville was driving a 2007 GMC pickup eastbound on 120, approaching Pioneer Avenue. A 64-year-old Oakdale man was driving a 2014 Chevy pickup westbound on the highway, west of Pioneer. Martinez entered the westbound traffic lane, directly into the path of the Chevy pickup. A head-on collision occurred, causing both vehicles to come to rest along the north shoulder. The driver of the Chevy pickup was taken to Doctors Medical Center where he later succumbed to his injuries. He was identified by the Stanislaus County Coroner’s Office as Simon Gutierrez Castaneda of Oakdale.

The right front passenger of the Chevy pickup, Eddie Cortes, 54, from Palmdale, was taken to Memorial Medical Center with major injuries.

Martinez was subsequently placed under arrest by the Modesto CHP for DUI and gross vehicular manslaughter. After a medical clearance, Martinez was transported and booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center on the charges.

State Route 120 was temporarily closed during the investigation and a detour was put in place around the crash scene.