Oakland man arrested following chase in stolen vehicle from Antioch to Caldecott Tunnel Saturday afternoon
Fought with police; two officers struck, one dragged, another pinned by suspect vehicle; loaded gun, drugs found
By Sgt. Rick Smith, Antioch Police Field Services – Patrol
On Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019 at approximately 2:56 P.M., Antioch Police Officers located a reported stolen vehicle in the parking lot of Sycamore Square, located in the 1000 block of Sycamore Drive. Officers contacted the driver of the stolen vehicle, a 27-year-old Oakland resident, and attempted to detain him. He managed to enter the vehicle and began actively fighting with uniformed officers.
The suspect’s vehicle was blocked in by marked Antioch Patrol Units and he began ramming the stolen vehicle into the patrol cars. One officer was struck by the vehicle while attempting to detain the suspect and dragged by the vehicle. A second uniformed Antioch Officer was struck by the suspect’s vehicle and momentarily pinned between the stolen vehicle and a patrol car. The suspect was able to flee out of the parking lot. The officer in the door had managed to free himself just prior to this. Both Officers sustained minor injuries.
The suspect fled from marked Antioch Patrol units through city streets and onto the freeway westbound, eventually entering westbound Highway 24. The California Highway Patrol took over the pursuit with the assistance of Contra Costa County Helicopter Star 3. The suspect entered the Caldecott Tunnel westbound and collided with two uninvolved vehicles. This disabled the suspect’s vehicle and he fled on foot through the tunnel. A CHP Officer attempted to take the suspect into custody, but he violently fought and managed to break free, fleeing into a neighboring apartment community. As he fled, the suspect attempted to carjack several occupied vehicles.
Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Helicopter Star 3 was able to track the suspect as he fled. With the assistance of CHP, Orinda Police, the CCC Sheriff Helicopter, the suspect was located in a heavily wooded area near Tunnel Road and taken into custody. A loaded firearm was located in the suspect’s discarded clothing, along with a large amount of narcotics for sale in his vehicle.
He was eventually booked into the Contra Costa County Detention Facility in Martinez on a variety of felony charges. No civilians were injured during the collisions.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925)778-2441.You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.
the attachments to this post:
Screenshot of suspect vehicle by ABC7
Guess the color.