Police Chase Murder Suspect In South LA To Anaheim Hills Area
SOUTH LA (CBSLA.com) — Police chased a murder suspect in South LA in a pursuit that ended hours later after a standoff along the 91 freeway near Corona.
The suspect, driving a black Mercedes-Benz with the moonroof open, is accused of assault with a deadly weapon and murder that took place about two weeks ago.
The chase started around 6:20 p.m., said Stu Mundel reported in Sky2.
Unlike some pursuits, the suspect had been driving slowly.
The chase started in the South LA area.
After about 10 minutes the suspect got onto the 91 Freeway. The chase went through Bellflower and Cerritos headed toward Fullerton.
At least five patrol cars were in pursuit. At the culmination of the chase, there seemed to be about 10 police and CHP cars.
CHP picked up the chase in the Cerritos area.
The suspect was described as dangerous and possibly armed.
For most of the chase, the suspect had free range on the freeway but finally ran into heavy traffic and had to weave in and out.
The suspect side-swiped a half dozen cars with several hubcaps coming off vehicles.
An accident ahead of the pursuit seems to have closed all lanes of the freeway.
One Chevy driver intentionally cut the suspect off in the Anaheim Hills area and tried to block his path.
The suspect's front tires appeared to be flat but he continued to drive 10-15 mph.
After a few moments, it was clear the suspect had no control of the vehicle as he hit several K-rails. Sparks were also visible coming from both front tires as the car began to smoke.
The car came to a complete stop. "There has been no movement seen inside the vehicle for some time," Mundel reported.
Anaheim police and SWAT joined what has turned into a barricade situation.
Many drivers got out of their vehicles and stood in frustration as the barricade situation went on for more than two hours.
KCAL9's Stacey Butler spoke to a series of frustrated drivers on the eastbound 91, many of whom got out of their vehicles to fight boredom. Many of the drivers also turned off their cars and milled about.
Officials told Butler the suspect was definitely alive and moving about inside the vehicle.
SWAT teams apparently deployed a smoke bomb and extricated the suspect out of the vehicle. The suspect was taken into custody.
One motorist, a man named Russ who works for Robbins Brothers in Costa Mesa, told Butler he wasn't all that frustrated.
"It's Cinco de Mayo," he said, "you gotta have fun. Once I get home, and get some tacos and some beer, I'll be good."
