Police: Opossum may have caused fatal Hobart crash

A 28-year-old man was killed when his vehicle struck a tree early Monday in northwest Indiana.

The Toyota struck a tree in the 7100 block of Grand Boulevard in Hobart at 4:40 a.m., according to Hobart Police Lt. James Gonzales.

The driver, 28-year-old Juan Gabriel Vazquez Rosado, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Gonzales and the Lake County coroner’s office. Rosado lived in the 1300 block of Camelot Manor in Portage, Indiana.

There were skid marks on the road near the crash and nearby was a dead opossum that looked as if it had recently been struck by a vehicle, Gonzales said. The opossum may have been a contributing factor to the crash.

The crash remains under investigation by Hobart police, the Lake County sheriff’s office and the Lake County coroner’s office.