NB Lanes Of 5 Freeway Reopen Following Pursuit, Standoff
BURBANK (CBSLA) -- Los Angeles police chased a suspect who was allegedly armed around Sun Valley and Burbank Friday evening.
The driver was allegedly armed with a 6-inch knife.
The suspect was originally wanted for driving recklessly. The chased started around 7:30 p.m.
Authorities said when police tried to stop the man who attempted to hit him with his vehicle.
During the pursuit the suspect -- at least six times -- slowly backed his car into patrol cars. That gesture ups his charges to include assault with a deadly weapon.
The suspect drove erratically, side-swiped several vehicles, nearly hit a pedestrian, played cat-and-mouse with officers and dinged half a dozen vehicles as he attempted to squeeze past them.
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He also drove the wrong-way on the 5 Freeway in the San Fernando and Burbank area. The suspect squeezed through two cars and got stuck and ended up nose-to-nose with another vehicle. At this juncture, a dozen officers got out of their vehicles with guns drawn.
A standoff situation began around 8:40 p.m.
Officers waited for a SWAT team to try to coax the man out of his vehicle.
He exited the vehicle just before 10 p.m. As officers moved in to handcuff him, he jumped up and began flailing his arms. About six police officers jumped on him and subdued him.
The suspect was described as a white male between 25-30 years of age.
He was in custody Saturday morning.
A stretch of the 5 Freeway's northbound lanes near Buena Vista Street in Burbank remained closed Saturday morning while the investigation continued. The lanes were reopened later Saturday morning.