Alhambra Police arrested a woman who attempted to slowly escape after being implicated in a hit-and-run while under the influence. The incident, captured on video and shared on the Alhambra Police Department's Instagram account, took place at the intersection of 4th Street and Mission Road. The woman's strategy of inactivity—seemingly hoping to turn invisible by mere stillness—failed to evade police detection.
The pursuit began after officers responded to a hit-and-run report. Upon locating the suspect's vehicle, the encounter quickly turned into an unusual police response as the driver, identified as Natalie Rankin from Alhambra, chose to simply ignore the officers' requests. KTLA reports, "The suspect refused to roll down her window and just sat there, as if she stayed still long enough, she'd become invisible somehow."
Following the initial standoff, Rankin then attempted to create distance between her and the law enforcement officers. The video shows her making a U-turn to slowly drive into her apartment complex. Officers, maintaining close proximity, followed as she "casually drove into her apartment complex, waited for the gate to open (as if that was going to stop us)," the police recounted in the Instagram post.
The end of the chase was anticlimactic as Rankin was ultimately taken into custody without incident. Her reaction, upon unlocking her car door to a waiting audience of officers, was one of complete surprise. The Alhambra Police Department captioned this moment, stating, "She wasn't fast, she wasn't furious, but she was arrested." As per the Instagram post, officers also confirmed that Rankin was indeed driving under the influence and was subsequently booked at APD jail. The post concluded with, "The real crime? That terrible exit strategy."
While details surrounding the hit-and-run, including any potential injuries, were not initially disclosed by officials.
