- A woman was arrested after allegedly stealing a traffic management pickup.
- Spike strips shredded a tire, forcing the fleeing truck to stop quickly.
- Police have not revealed a motive behind last Thursday’s truck theft.
We’ve seen plenty of cases of drivers fleeing from police and running over spike strips, but still failing to stop, and sometimes even driving on their car’s rims. However, late last week, a California Highway Patrol officer successfully deployed a set of strips that forced the driver to pull over and surrender.
The chase began last Thursday morning when an individual stole a white pickup truck being used as a traffic management vehicle. At the time, it still had an arrow board mounted above the roof, flashing away, while the bed was loaded with construction gear and bright orange cones. Clearly, the person who reportedly stole it didn’t care about being inconspicuous.
Watch: Wild LA Chase Sees Armed Duo Steal Four Vehicles Including Big Rig And Get Away
Police began pursuing the vehicle on the 5 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley and continued onto the 14 Freeway, heading into Santa Clarita.
Footage shared on Instagram by the California Highway Patrol in the Antelope Valley shows an officer hiding behind a concrete crash barrier just as the stolen truck approaches. He quickly throws the spike strip across the road, and the truck runs directly over it. Seconds later, multiple police vehicles come into view as they pursue the truck.
According to NBC Los Angeles, at least one of the stolen truck’s tires was ripped completely off. Shortly after, the driver pulled over near the border between Kern and Los Angeles County, no doubt realizing that fleeing in a slow truck, with a destroyed tire, was a hopeless endeavor.
Local media reports that the female driver was ordered to throw the keys out the window, which she complied with, before being taken her into custody.
