A wild police pursuit on Sunday in Los Angeles has captured attention due to its dramatic twists and turns.
Beginning with a carjacking in Lancaster, two suspects opened fire on the vehicle’s owner before leading police on a lengthy chase.
Over the course of several hours, the suspects stole two more vehicles, ultimately ending up under a freeway overpass in Boyle Heights, where they appeared to have evaded capture from both law enforcement and news helicopters above.
As the pursuit unfolded, things took an unexpected turn. Authorities have suggested that the suspects managed to escape in a different vehicle, aided by accomplices.
Three days after the incident, law enforcement officials report that the suspects remain at large.
Art Acevedo, a former California Highway Patrol section chief with extensive experience in police pursuits, described the suspects’ tactics as “completely aggressive, really reckless and highly dangerous.”
The public’s fascination with police chases in Los Angeles has been longstanding, frequently televised and deeply ingrained in local culture.
The infamous O.J. Simpson slow-speed chase in 1994 serves as a hallmark of this phenomenon.
What transpired in Boyle Heights could very well become a noteworthy chapter in the lore of police pursuits.
Statistically, most pursuits end with the apprehension of the suspect, especially when they are high-profile and tracked in real-time by media.
A civil grand jury report from 2017 analyzed 421 police pursuits in Los Angeles County and discovered that roughly 67% of these chases resulted in immediate arrests.
However, this leaves a significant number of cases—139 pursuits—where suspects were not captured right away.
Among these, 59 involved vehicles escaping, while in 47 instances, police opted to abandon the chase for safety reasons.
Law enforcement often later identifies suspects through forensic techniques such as fingerprint analysis.
In the recent case from Sunday, police are currently examining forensics from the stolen vehicles, including a loaded firearm that was located, in hopes of linking it to the suspects.
Uncertainty remains regarding whether the weapon was owned by the fleeing individuals.
In recent years, law enforcement agencies have adapted their pursuit procedures to minimize risks to innocent bystanders.
Ed Obayashi, a policing expert and Northern California deputy, pointed out, “We don’t want to injure or kill any innocent bystanders.
That’s a greater tragedy than letting these guys get away.”
In 2024, the LAPD reported involvement in 1,116 pursuits—the highest number recorded since at least 2018—with over 30% ending in accidents.
However, the department has noted a decline in pursuits this year compared to previous figures.
The chaos during Sunday’s chase unfolded around 9:45 p.m. when two suspects hijacked a white Ford F-250 truck near 20th Street East and Lancaster Boulevard.
After the vehicle’s owner attempted to follow and reclaim the truck, he was compelled to retreat when the suspects opened fire.
This marked the beginning of a tense and tumultuous night for both the suspects and law enforcement.
At one point, video footage captured the suspects driving the wrong way on a freeway with what appeared to be a flat tire.
As their car slowed, the passenger attempted to carjack a nearby white sedan, but the driver locked the doors quickly.
After regrouping in the Ford, the suspects soon stopped again to try and commandeer a big rig.
However, the truck driver cleverly maneuvered in reverse to escape the situation, prompting suspects to abandon that plan and jump back into the Ford.
Moments later, they collided the Ford with the front of another semi-truck carrying milk.
As the truck driver fled the scene, the suspects climbed into the driver’s side of the milk truck and proceeded down the local freeways, donning signs that read “Got Milk” on the mud flaps.
They traveled through various areas, including Studio City, Hollywood, and downtown Los Angeles, blending onto surface streets intermittently.
Eventually, they abandoned the milk truck beneath a 10 Freeway underpass near Alameda and Newton streets.
Following California Highway Patrol’s arrival, officers quickly surrounded the abandoned vehicle but soon realized both suspects had evaded capture.
Viewers were left speculating whether the suspects had managed to vanish in the chaos.
However, law enforcement remained in pursuit.
The suspects transitioned into a third vehicle—a white Chevrolet Silverado—before taking off towards Boyle Heights, ultimately leaving the Silverado abandoned under the 101 Freeway as they slipped away.
Policing expert Ed Obayashi commented on a growing trend where suspects exploit structures like overpasses to escape police visibility.
Such locations provide a tactical advantage, especially when ground units stay at a distance for safety, giving suspects a window to disappear.
Despite the challenges, Acevedo expressed optimism about law enforcement’s ability to track down the suspects amid modern technology that continuously captures and relays critical information.
“There’s so much technology out there that’s capturing information that hopefully they’ll be able to find them,” he stated.
image source from：latimes
