Car Thief Leads Reckless Chase From Petaluma Ends in Richmond City Streets

RICHMOND, CA- A suspected car thief and an accomplice escaped police and the California Highway Patrol after a pursuit from Petaluma to Richmond on Tuesday.

A resident of Quarry Street in Petaluma called police and said a male had gotten out of a white van and stole their Honda. The caller said their wallet and car keys had been recently stolen in Marin County.

Petaluma police Officer Paul Accornero spotted the Honda in the Quarry Street area and pursued it when it sped away, while Officer Mario Giomi chased the white van as it and the Honda drove south on U.S. Highway 101.

Accornero ended the pursuit of the stolen Honda when the driver drove recklessly in disregard of public safety. Accornero then deployed a spike strip near a bridge abutment to try to stop the white van, police said.

The spike strip apparently malfunctioned as the van drove over it and did not flatten the van's tires, police said. The officers pursued the van and turned the pursuit over to the CHP when it traveled onto the connector ramp to Interstate Highway 580 and the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

The CHP ended its pursuit when the van drove onto Richmond city streets with pedestrians in the area, Petaluma police said.

By Bay City News