Stolen Car Recovered after Chase through SM

Police chased a man suspected of stealing a car Wednesday evening from North Hollywood through Santa Monica to Malibu and all points between. The man drove erratically and was alone in the BMW that was reported stolen.

The pursuit began around 6:45 p.m. at Whitsett Avenue and Valleyheart Drive. The driver often went as fast as 70 mph on surface streets. He blew red lights and went at “extremely high speeds” while he made a series of wide turns. The stolen car suspect zigzagged dangerously close to several cars and drove on a sidewalk to evade authorities. The driver ran into holiday traffic in Burbank and in Hollywood, then went through Mid-City, West Hollywood, North Hollywood and Universal City.

About two hours into the chase, police attempted a pursuit-interruption maneuver and narrowly missed the driver.

The driver mostly stayed on surface streets, but after the failed maneuver, he made his way to the 10 Freeway and went west toward Santa Monica. He made his way to the PCH and went through Santa Monica and Pacific Palisades.

In Malibu, the suspect was boxed in by police. After almost three hours, he got out of the vehicle with his hands up.

The owner of the car had reported it stolen. Authorities said the driver cut his arms, and they found medication and a pocket knife on his person. The man was taken to a hospital.