A probationer allegedly led Murrieta police on a three-mile pursuit through the city in a stolen vehicle that ultimately crashed at an intersection, injuring eight people including himself, authorities said Wednesday.
The pursuit happened shortly before 11 a.m. Tuesday, beginning less than a block from the Murrieta Police Department, at Jefferson Avenue and Juniper Street, according to a police statement.
The agency said the suspect, whose identity was not immediately released, was passing through the intersection when he committed a traffic violation, prompting a patrol unit to initiate an enforcement stop and discover in the process that the sedan had been reported stolen.
“As officers approached the vehicle to make contact with its two occupants, the driver of the stolen vehicle sped away,” the police department stated.
Patrol officers gave chase, and the motorist slowed down as if he intended to pull over but didn’t, and the pursuit continued northbound.
“The pursuit continued on city streets, subsequently ending when the suspect vehicle ran a red light at the intersection of Nutmeg Street and Jackson Avenue, colliding with three other vehicles,” police said.
Six people in the three vehicles involved in the collision suffered non-life-threatening injuries, along with the suspect and the woman in the vehicle with him, according to authorities.
The parties’ identities were not released.
All were taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar for treatment and were expected to fully recover.
The suspect was arrested on suspicion of felony evading, possession of methamphetamine for sale, auto theft and probation violations.