Earlier today, a man from East Palo Alto found himself taken into custody after trying to evade police officers in a stolen car, which culminated in collisions and damaged patrol vehicles. As reported by the Mountain View Police Department, the incident began when a call came in about a possible burglary at an apartment complex on Showers Drive.
Responding officers quickly spotted a white Honda SUV that matched the suspect vehicle description attemping to leave the complex. Further investigation revealed that the car had been stolen from a neighboring city. When officers tried to pull the vehicle over, the driver sped off onto San Antonio Road in an attempt to flee, prompting a brief pursuit.
However, the chase was quickly called off when the suspect entered the southbound Highway 101 at high speeds. Moments later, patrol officers caught sight of the car again as it exited the highway via Old Middlefield Way. The driver was now traveling at a slower speed and going against traffic.
As officers tried to pull the vehicle over once more, the driver turned into a parking lot and collided head-on with a responding police vehicle before attempting to speed away again. The pursuit came to an abrupt end when the suspect lost control of the car after colliding with a power pole on Colony Street.
The suspect, 29-year-old East Palo Alto resident Anthony Quach, tried to flee on foot but was apprehended by patrol officers. According to the Mountain View Police Department's account, three additional passengers inside the vehicle were detained without any further incidents. All four individuals were taken to a nearby hospital for medical examination before Quach was booked into Santa Clara County Jail.
Quach now faces eight outstanding felony warrants, along with charges for vehicle theft, felony evasion, hit and run, resisting arrest, and assault with a deadly weapon. Fortunately, no officers were injured during this dramatic chain of events, though two patrol vehicles suffered significant damage.
