High-Speed Pursuit Of Stolen Senior Transport Bus Ends With Pittsburg Man's Arrest
ANTIOCH (CBS SF) -- A Pittsburg man was arrested Tuesday after allegedly stealing a senior transport bus in Antioch and leading officers on a high-speed pursuit that ended in three separate collisions, including one with a school bus, police said.
Officers responded at 10:11 a.m. Tuesday to a report from employees at the Quail Lodge Retirement Community who told officers their senior transport bus had just been stolen, according to Antioch police.
The driver told officers he had stopped at the Safeway grocery store, located at 3365 Deer Valley Road, to pick up some Quail Lodge residents.
The driver left the bus running outside the store while he went inside to locate the residents, police said.
When he came back outside, the bus was gone.
Shortly before 2 p.m., police said a citizen called police to report they saw the bus driving onto state Highway 4 from Sand Creek Road in Brentwood.
Antioch officers located the bus, which was traveling west on the highway, at A Street and attempted to make a traffic stop, but the driver—later identified as 27-year-old Cameron Alexander—refused to yield.
Police pursued the bus at a high rate of speed as it continued driving west to the Loveridge Road exit in Pittsburg, police said. The bus started to exit, but then turned around and began heading east in the westbound lanes.
Once the car started driving the wrong way, police said officers canceled the pursuit.
The bus proceeded to collide with three other vehicles, including a big-rig and a school bus carrying approximately 50 students, according to police.
Police said no one reported any injuries as a result of the collisions.
Alexander then abandoned the bus and ran north, jumped a fence and ran into a Honda car dealership on Century Court in Pittsburg, police said.
Officers found Alexander with the help of a police dog hiding behind a vehicle at the dealership and he was taken into custody without incident, according to police.
Officers arrested Alexander on suspicion of auto theft, possession of stolen property, felony evading, reckless driving, driving under the influence, driving on a suspended license and a probation violation.
Anyone with information about the case is encouraged to call Antioch police at (925) 779-6940.
