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Car chases are a dime a dozen in Los Angeles, it seems, but a man led police on an unusually intense chase last night during which he carjacked a second car mid-pursuit.
Police first attempted to pull over the man, identified as a 30-something Hispanic man, last night around 5:15 p.m. on First Street in Boyle Heights, KTLA reports. He was driving silver Toyota Camry that had been reported as stolen at the time, but this would not be the only car he would steal during the pursuit.
He drove the silver car maniacally in an attempt to evade police, striking several other cars along the way, until finally totaling his ride in South Gate. You'd think this would be the end, but he jumped out of the silver car and immediately looked for another.
Though his first attempt to carjack a white car failed as the driver wisely sped off, he did manage to steal a Volkswagen from Elizabeth Yarahuan, a 22-year-old woman who was on her way home from work, by pointing a gun at her and demanding she get out of the car. She later told reporters she let him have the car because she was scared, and that though was alone at the time of the theft, she often has her two young daughters with her. After she got out of her car, video shows she was able to run to safety.
The chase then continued until the man got stuck trying to exit the 60 Freeway in Montebello. Not to be deterred, he hopped out and attempted to commandeer another car. This driver managed to fend him off, so he ran after a second car. This car kept moving, causing the man to trip and fall as he held onto it.
At this point, police ran up behind him. When he would not stop, they opened fire, and the amount of times the man was struck has not been released. He was taken to a nearby hospital and is in stable condition. Police later found a semi-automatic pistol at the scene, Fox 11 reports.