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'A lot of blood': Man mows down 10 pedestrians in a stolen car while evading police. New Yorkers made sure he wouldn't get far on foot.
A 20-year-old man driving a stolen SUV mowed down at least 10 pedestrians, including two children, in Midtown Manhattan during rush hour Tuesday, according to police. Upon wrecking his stolen ride, the suspect took off on foot, but New Yorkers ensured he wouldn't get far.
According to the NYPD, the suspect, who does not have a New York State driver's license and was described as "white or Hispanic," was driving a 2018 Hyundai Tucson with Illinois plates that had been reported stolen from the Bronx on July 31.
A license plate reader alerted police to the vehicle's presence at 45th Street and 2nd Avenue around 5:30 p.m.
Officers began following the vehicle while attempting to verify it had in fact been stolen. Having determined the report was accurate, police attempted to pull the vehicle over at 43rd Street and 3rd Avenue amid heavy traffic.
Although the driver initially motioned to comply, he quickly altered course, hit the gas, and attempted to evade the officers, striking a bicyclist, said police.
Patrol Borough Manhattan South Deputy Chief James Kehoe told reporters that officers remained in pursuit, but did so "at a lower rate of speed because of the heavy traffic."
After hitting a yellow taxi, the suspect pulled onto the sidewalk, where he plowed through several pedestrians near Grand Central Station.
"It was crazy, it was horrific," Michael Discioarro, a witness to the mayhem, told the New York Post.
Discioarro indicated one "victim on the ground was seriously injured. A lot of blood."
"Another victim was laid up against the door of a store. She was clearly hurt," said Discioarro. "Her leg was twisted in a way you shouldn’t twist a leg."
The Daily Mail reported that one witness saw a victim go "flying through the air" after being struck.
At a crowded 42nd Avenue intersection, the suspect made a U-turn, hitting additional victims, then sped down Lexington Avenue going the wrong way.
The vehicular component of the chase came to an end when the suspect barreled into a black 2011 Toyota RAV-4.
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Although his stolen ride was immobilized, the suspect carried on, making a mad dash through the nearby crowd. However, bystanders intervened, pinning him until police could arrive.
Video obtained by the Post shows multiple Good Samaritans tackling the suspect to the ground, then holding him down while he kicked and flailed.
"When the cops showed up, the guy they took into custody was trying to fight with the cops — trying to push the cops away," said Discioarro.
While police got their man, a female suspect who had been with him managed to get away and remains on the loose, according to authorities.
Kehoe indicated, "Upon initial review of this incident, it does not appear to have any connection to terrorist activity."
Among the 10 victims taken to Bellevue Hospital, all of whom survived with non-life-threatening injuries, were a 6-year-old and a 10-year-old. The eldest victim is 72.
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The suspect reportedly is known to police, with several previous arrests including two on gun charges and others for drug crimes.
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Guardian of four teens arrested in Maryland for auto-theft reportedly pulled up to fetch them from police in a stolen car
Some alleged car thieves unwittingly gave Maryland patrol officers a hand last week, driving critical evidence right past the police station.
Officers in Charles County, Maryland, glimpsed two occupied Hyundai vehicles in a business parking lot while on patrol around 1:07 p.m. on May 16. According to police, a quick computer check revealed that both vehicles had been reported stolen.
Officers endeavored to initiate a traffic stop, but the suspects allegedly fled the scene.
While officers gave chase, a 911 call came in, revealing that bandits driving cars matching the description of the stolen vehicles had just knocked over a business at St. Charles Towne Center.
The suspects, alleged to have been fleeing a burglary in stolen property, sped to the Smallwood Park and Ride, where they ditched the vehicles. Despite making a concerted effort to hide, the alleged car thieves — two adults and four juveniles — were ultimately tracked down and arrested.
The chase may have come to an end, but it appears there were still yet other suspects keen to get caught.
The CCSO indicated that another stolen vehicle pulled up outside the station and dropped off the younger arrestees' guardian along with two other females, before trundling away.
While the trio of women — Carlisa Monnae Blackeney, 18, and Mahkiyh McQuinn-Woodly, 18, along with a female juvenile — went to take custody of the minors, officers searched the area for the third stolen vehicle, finding it on a nearby street.
The steering column on the vehicle was damaged and the back window had been busted in. According to the sheriffs office, 19-year-old Anthony Stewart and three additional juveniles were inside when they found the vehicle.
Officers reportedly ordered everyone inside the getaway vehicle to exit, but Stewart allegedly refused to comply and sped off, nearly running over and pinning one of the officers.
The sheriff's office stated that Stewart only drove a short distance before ditching the car, having not learned from Whitaker and Alston's earlier alleged failure. Stewart's three young passengers similarly piled out of the vehicle, said the CCSO.
After a brief foot chase, all of the stolen car's occupants were apprehended.
Stewart was charged with first-degree assault, second-degree assault, theft, unauthorized use of a vehicle, and providing a false name. The CCSO also discovered there had been outstanding warrants for his arrest.
The trio of minors who had allegedly been with him — a 16-year-old male with active arrest warrants, a 13-year-old female reported missing from a nearby county, and another juvenile — were all charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
Blackeney and McQuinn-Woodly were charged with theft and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, among other charges.
Deshaun Deamonte Whitaker, 18, and Vincent Lee Alston, 21, of Washington, D.C., were similarly charged with theft, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, and rogue and vagabond.
While Whitaker was released on a $2,000 unsecured bond on May 18, Alston remains at the Charles County Detention Center without bond.
The Charles County Sheriff's Office indicated that the four juveniles believed to be involved in the initial police chase were charged on a juvenile office report with theft and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
Neighborhood Scout indicated that the chances of becoming a victim of a property crime in Maryland is 1 in 63.
Three vehicles, two counties, one blistering-hot pursuit: Chase caught on camera ends as deputies open fire on berserker
A suspect led police on a dangerous high-speed chase through two Southern California counties on Wednesday night, stealing multiple cars, ramming deputies, breaking into a house, and putting countless lives at risk. The suspect, who has been identified as 32-year-old Johnny Anchondo, made abundantly clear with his crime spree that he'd rather risk death than jail time. Over an hour later, deputies appeared ready to oblige him.
Act I
It all began at 4:45 p.m. in the northern Orange County city of Fullerton when police observed the Hispanic driver of a black Honda Civic committing traffic violations near Auto Center Drive and I-5. The L.A. Times reported that the driver sped off, inaugurating a police chase that would last for well over an hour.
CBS News reported that the suspect had stopped near Buena Park to try to steal a truck. Having proven unable, he got back into the Civic.
According to Capt. Jon Radus, spokesman for the Fullerton Police Department, the driver of the Civic led police into Anaheim, getting on and off state route 91 in a successful attempt to lose the squad cars on his tail.
Although officers briefly lost sight of the Honda, KTTV reported that they quickly managed to track the suspect down to an apartment complex parking lot in northern Anaheim.
Act II
The suspect traded in the Civic and stole a white van belonging to Josh Reynolds.
The trade-in appeared short-lived, as police quickly cornered the suspect in the parking lot and readied their weapons.
Despite the commands issued by police, the driver of the stolen van refused to surrender. Instead, he rammed the single police cruiser that had hemmed him in, performed a four-point turn, and pulled out of the parking lot.
Reynolds said, "My refrigerated van was so heavy that he was able to push the police car out of his way by backing up and ramming it and squeezed out."
Just as the suspect got out of the parking lot, additional police units began to arrive. The driver nearly smashed into one cruiser head-on, threading by and speeding down a residential street.
\u201cWild car chase in Los Angeles County today...\n\nhttps://t.co/LInMuZvOyY\u201d— Citizen Free Press (@Citizen Free Press) 1668047251
The suspect made his way to the city of Whittier in Los Angeles County.
Near Marquardt Ave and Imperial Highway, one of the stolen van's tires gave out. The van began to spew sparks as it rolled along on an exposed rim.
The suspect continued driving recklessly, trailing sparks right through a gas station.
On the other side of the station, another police unit managed to trap the suspect, pinning the wrecked van at Carmenita Rd. and Placid Drive. The suspect floored the gas, but rather than momentum, all he got was smoke and more sparks.
Once again police officers drew down on the suspect, and once again he evaded them, this time ditching the smoldering van and fleeing on foot.
Here is more footage of the van portion of the chase:
Police Chase: Suspect not giving up after tense pursuit in OC youtu.be
Act III
In a desperate attempt to evade the police now encircling the area, the suspect broke into a nearby house.
One of the residents, Andres Benitez, told KTTV that when the suspect stole into his house, Benitez confronted the man with a knife.
Benitez, who was disappointed the family's pit bull didn't make mincemeat of the intruder, escorted the suspect out of the home.
Benitez told reporters, "I told him I'm going to have to stab you right now, bro. ... But my mom just kept screaming and screaming. He saw that my mom was holding me back and he just got out of the house."
The suspect did, however, manage to steal the key to Benitez's pickup truck — a new acquisition he and his brother had made for their landscaping company.
The family can be seen on video frantically trying to stop the suspect as he steals Benitez's truck, nearly running over dogs on his way out of the driveway:
\u201cWATCH LIVE: A person is leading police on a wild car chase through Los Angeles County \ud83d\udc40\n\nhttps://t.co/X0kfExK3GD\u201d— 7News DC (@7News DC) 1668044049
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department took over the chase, which saw the suspect driving the wrong way, over medians, onto curbs, and threatening countless lives as he blasted through crowded intersections.
After several close calls on South Hacienda Boulevard, where the suspect reached speeds over 70 mph, the truck's front left wheel gave out. Losing control of the car and the situation, the suspect crashed into a Jeep, resulting in heavy damage.
Notwithstanding the damage, the suspect continued to press his luck.
Approaching traffic stopped at a red light, the suspect punched through four vehicles, hammering one into the intersection. A police cruiser barreled into the pickup in an apparent effort to prevent the suspect from endangering more lives. Several other police units closed in.
The front tires on Benitez's stolen truck were all rim, yet the rear drive still proved capable of scraping it along and into another gas station. LASD deputies immediately stormed the gas station, guns drawn.
After nearly toppling a gas pump, the suspect reversed into a deputy's vehicle. At that point, deputies — who believed the suspect was armed — weren't taking any more chances, electing instead to light Anchondo up.
Deputies riddled the stolen truck with bullets, but reportedly missed the suspect.
They approached the truck with ballistic shields and took Anchondo into custody.
\u201cLos Angeles police chase ending was nuts\u201d— Ted Buddwell \ud83c\udfc0\ud83c\udfc8 (@Ted Buddwell \ud83c\udfc0\ud83c\udfc8) 1668047592
CBS News reported that one bystander was injured during the standoff and detained for refusing to get out of the line of fire.
Adrian Cruz had been sitting at the Hacienda Heights stoplight when the suspect drove into his sedan. A police cruiser rammed the white pickup, which in turn re-hammered Cruz's sedan.
Cruz said police began shooting at the suspect. "It just sounded crazy, like a war zone."
In total, three people were taken to the hospital with injuries caused by the suspect's reckless driving.
According to police records, Johnny Anchondo was previously charged with multiple felonies. He was arrested in November 2020, December 2020, January 2021, and February 2021, just in Los Angeles County.
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