A man sought in a San Fernando Valley murder and robbery was arrested in a chaotic pursuit and carjacking that left one person dead after the victim was dragged by his own SUV for more than mile on an Inglewood street.
The deadly chain of events began as police were conducting a surveillance operation on the wanted man in the 5900 block of 7th Avenue. Detectives watched the man get into the passenger side of a vehicle and leave the area.
A short pursuit began after officers tried to get the driver to pull over, police said. The brief chase ended in a crash at Florence and Haas avenues in Inglewood.
“The murder suspect got out of the passenger side and carjacked another vehicle,” police said in a statement. “The murder suspect drove away from Florence Avenue and Haas Avenue, dragging the carjacking victim.”
The carjacking victim was dragged on the street for more than a mile before he was dislodged, police said.
Tina Atkins, who was picking up her children at an after-school program, described a horrifying scene.
“We just saw a car coming straight at us with a dead body hanging out of the bottom,” Atkins said. “I hopped the curb with my kids in the car because I didn’t want them to hit me.”
The victim died at the scene. Details about the man’s identity were not immediately available.
Atkins’ car and an undercover police vehicle were struck during the chase.
The pursuit ended when the driver crashed near East Florence Avenue and North Prairie Avenue, near Edward Vincent Jr. Park. The SUV flipped, but the man refused to exit, leading to a standoff near a cemetery.
A SWAT team responded and the man eventually surrendered nearly two hours later.
The man was wanted in a killing during the robbery of a Reseda-area jewelry store. The driver who crashed the other vehicle was also taken into custody, according to police.
Their names were not immediately available for release.
Source: NBC Los Angeles
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