Van Crosses into Mexico after 173-Mile Calif. Highway Patrol Chase

By Salvador Hernandez

Source Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — In the annals of L.A. car chase lore, there were but a few ways for drivers to escape a police pursuit, especially one being broadcast live.

A few have escaped into parking lots and abandoned their cars. In one case earlier this year, a carjacking suspect managed to flee with help from an accomplice.

But driving from Ventura County and into Mexico with police on your tail? Well, it happened Monday.

The driver behind the wheel of a minivan fled from police across four counties, speeding across freeways and evading the California Highway Patrol until the suspect made it across the border into Mexico, officials said, where they seemingly escaped.

Attempts to stop the vehicle using spike strips failed as the van continued to speed south through Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, as police pursued the van for more than two hours.

The CHP began pursuing the van shortly before 11 a.m. after receiving reports of a stolen vehicle from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, said Sgt. Dan Keen of the CHP.

A spokesperson for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to a request for comment.

The van continued making its way south on the 405 freeway, at times reaching speeds of up to 80 mph.

At one point during the pursuit on the 405 freeway, broadcast live on local news, a CHP officer standing behind a median in the middle of the freeway threw out a spike strip in the minivan’s path as it was driving at freeway speeds.

The van, which was in the No. 2 lane next to the carpool lane, swerved to the right and avoided it and the chase continued. A second spike strip attempt later also failed.

Before noon, the vehicle made its way into Orange County, making its way onto the 5 freeway in Mission Viejo.

Sgt. Esteban Hernandez of the CHP said units notified U.S. Customs and Border Protection at the San Ysidro port of entry about the chase at 1:08 p.m., informing them the vehicle was nearing the border.

The notification, he said, is to help CBP officials be aware of the chase and hopefully get units in place to prevent the vehicle from crossing and prevent injuries to others at the port of entry.

By 1:19 p.m., Hernandez said, CHP units were canceled during the pursuit on State Route 905 due to public safety.

The cancellation of CHP units is common when pursuits near the border, Hernandez said, for the safety of officers and drivers who might be at the port of entry.

“We don’t want this car forcing its way through the entry, hurting other people,” Hernandez said.

By 1:24 p.m., CHP officers were notified that the van, and the driver inside, had made its way into Mexico, Hernandez said.

Officials at U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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