Car speeds off with man on roof during chase on Near North Side; stolen car crashes nearby
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A police pursuit of an auto theft crew on the Near North Side Tuesday led one suspect to climb onto the roof of a car to get away, while another went on to crash a stolen car.
The area where the crimes happened gets congested at times, but that didn't stop thieves from escaping police like a scene from a movie.
In the mid-afternoon Tuesday, police spotted some people trying to steal a white Jeep under the Brown and Purple Line 'L' tracks on Locust Street, in the old Cabrini-Green area.
A camera mounted on an area business captured what happened next. The Jeep the thieves were trying to steal is seen with its hazard lights on, and with a gray Buick parked in front of it.
When police pulled up to the crew in an unmarked sport-utility vehicle, the gray Buick took off, and two people ran from police in two different directions.
Police were seen right behind the suspects, chasing them.
Police said at that point around the corner on Orleans Street, one suspect ran toward police sergeant. That suspect then got onto the hood – and then the roof – of a white Lincoln sedan and the demanded that the driver of that getaway car step on the gas, police said.
The driver of the Lincoln hit the police sergeant, but the sergeant was not injured, police said.
Video captured the man climbing onto the white Lincoln as it sped off.
Meanwhile, an Infiniti Q50 was also stolen in the same incident.
About 20 minutes later at 2:45 p.m., the Infiniti was traveling at Erie and Orleans streets when it slammed into a Ford van, police said. The driver of the Infiniti then lost control of the car and hit a lamp post, police said.
The van the Infiniti hit belonged to the Furry Paws Chicago dog daycare center, and three dogs were inside. The driver and the animals were not hurt.
A crew then got out of the stolen car and ran. Police did not say how many got away.
Chicago Police stress the driver hit the officer after following the orders of the crook on the hood.
Police searched extensively on the Nar North Side and downtown for the cars involved and those who ran away. But late Tuesday, no one was in custody.