The L.A. Weekly reports that the early evidence points to speed being a “major factor” in the one-car, 4:30 am car crash that took journalist Michael Hastings’ life earlier this week in Los Angeles.

According to their police and investigative sources, the engine of Hastings’ 200 horsepower Mercedes-Benz was found a hundred feet from the crash, “a clue that would indicate the vehicle was traveling at more than 60 miles an hour when it apparently veered out of control and struck a palm tree,” writes the Weekly.

While a number of conspiracies have evolved around the death of the left-wing journalist, most famous for a controversial Rolling Stone article that resulted in the 2010 firing of Afghan commanding general Stanley McChrystal, an investigator told the Weekly that, “With the engine torn off, the gas lines would rupture and it would start a fire.”

In the same article, The Weekly also revealed that Hastings “does have a history with alcohol and drugs.” Moreover, in one of his books, Hastings recalled a drunken car accident he was involved in at age 19, but also said he hadn’t had a drink in 10 years. The Weekly adds:

And in this True/Slant piece from 2009, Hastings describes himself as a “a recovering drunk/addict/screw-up.”

In another True/Slant piece, he says, “I have smoked crack.”

A toxicology test is expected in a few weeks.

Hastings was 33.

Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC