An 18-year-old man who allegedly stole a car at gunpoint from a Palm Desert business with the help of a teenage accomplice, then led authorities on a high-speed freeway pursuit, was charged with carjacking and robbery Wednesday.
Deandre John Ray of Moreno Valley was arrested after he and a 16-year- old boy allegedly committed a carjacking at 10:49 a.m. Sunday in the parking lot of a business in the 72400 block of Highway 111.
Ray allegedly drove the car onto westbound Interstate 10 and was followed briefly by deputies, who ended the pursuit for safety reasons, according to sheriff’s Sgt. David Wright.
The car was later spotted by California Highway Patrol officers off Interstate 10 in unincorporated Cabazon, where the 16-year-old was taken into custody, according to Wright. With deputies in pursuit, Ray drove west on I-10 and the 60 freeway, exited in Moreno Valley and stopped the car near Cottonwood Avenue and Heacock Street, where he was taken into custody, Wright said.
In addition to carjacking and robbery, Ray faces sentence enhancing allegations of being armed during the carjacking and committing the offense while out on bail. He pleaded not guilty earlier this month to charges stemming from a Sept. 10 robbery in Moreno Valley, court records show.
Ray, who is being held in lieu of $120,000 bail, is slated to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
The teenager, whose name was withheld, was booked into juvenile hall in Indio, according to Wright.
–City News Service