3 arrested after short police pursuit of stolen car in Anaheim ends in multicar crash
Three people were arrested late Tuesday morning after police chased a stolen vehicle before the driver crashed, causing several other collisions.
An Anaheim police officer was patrolling shortly after 11 a.m. near Ball Road when the license plate on a nearby vehicle came up as stolen from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Compton station area, Anaheim police Sgt. Daron Wyatt said.
The officer called for backup and followed the car, a Nissan Altima, east on Ball Road, then north on Magnolia Avenue before turning onto South Beach Boulevard, where several other patrol cars and a police helicopter were waiting about 100 yards down the road.
Police tried to stop the car, but the driver accelerated away. About 30 seconds later, the unidentified driver ran a red light at Orange Avenue before crashing into a Ford Mustang heading south on Beach Boulevard, Wyatt said.
Officials said the collision caused the Altima to careen into a light pole on the southwest corner of the intersection, and the Mustang burst into flames.
Two other vehicles crashed near the intersection as a result of the first collision, Wyatt said.
The three people inside the Nissan tried to flee from police on foot, but all were soon detained by officers.
An Anaheim police officer was struck by a truck during the multivehicle crashes and was taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange.
No one appeared to have been seriously injured in the crashes, although at least two of those arrested were wheeled away on stretchers while in handcuffs and taken to nearby West Anaheim Medical Center.
Police closed South Beach Boulevard during the investigation and asked drivers to avoid the area early Tuesday afternoon.
