VAN NUYS (CNS) – A high-speed pursuit of a suspect in a stolen car ended when the man’s attempt to escape on a skateboard was foiled by a driver who blocked the suspect’s path.
The pursuit began on the San Diego (405) Freeway about 3:30 p.m. Monday, Dec.1 when an electronic notification about a stolen vehicle was picked up by a police helicopter pilot who began following the car and also notified units on the ground, said Officer Jack Richter of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Several police units followed the 2004 BMW until it crashed on Valjean Street and the suspect got out and fled on a skateboard. He was quickly taken into custody, with the help of a pickup truck driver, at Cantlay Street and Woodley Avenue, Richter said.
“I got to say this is the first time I ever heard of a suspect trying to flee on a skateboard,” Richter said.
The pickup truck driver, identified as Joe Pissaro, said he saw the suspect coming at him and “it was just instinct to block the guy off and slow him down a bit. I’m glad he didn’t get away.”
He said that as the suspect approached him, the man said in Spanish, “Move it!”
The suspect’s name was not immediately available.