High-Speed Chase Ends in North Park

A loud police chase ended in a quiet residential pocket of North Park on August 9.

The target of the manhunt was apprehended just west of the 3100 block of 32nd Street. Area resident Brian Corrigan saw the catch.

"They chased him down and got him cornered in the canyon here," Corrigan said, pointing to the undeveloped area behind the houses on the west side of 32nd Street.

A police helicopter and multiple news choppers had circled the skies over the area for more than an hour. As the police copter's loudspeaker played a repeating message saying authorities were searching for a Hispanic male wearing a black hat and a black shirt, a team of four officers and a police dog searched several yards on Bancroft Street.

Just after 2pm, Corrigan saw a man bolt west across the alley behind Bancroft Street before heading into the canyon. Minutes later, the man was in police custody in the back of a CHP cruiser on 32nd Street.

According to local TV news, the chase had started on the 8 freeway at about 1pm when a California Highway Patrol officer attempted to pull over an SUV for not having license plates. After a high-speed pursuit on the 8 and the 15, police lost track of the SUV until the helicopter spotted it on the 3100 block of Bancroft Street.

"He crashed and then he took off (on foot)," a CHP officer said of the suspected driver.