Truck crashes after CHP chase, including wrong-way freeway pursuit

The driver of a stakebed truck engaged California Highway Patrol officers in a high-speed pursuit Thursday, at one point barreling down the 215 Freeway in the wrong direction, before running off the road and crashing in Rancho Cucamonga.

The driver, whose identity was not immediately available, was wanted on suspicion of grand theft and possibly brandishing a weapon, authorities said. During the pursuit, officials said they recovered a gun that was thrown from the truck’s cab.

The pursuit kicked off shortly before noon when the driver allegedly returned to a Santa Fe Springs business Thursday to steal more construction supplies and spotted police officers, said Whittier police Lt. Bryan Ellis.

CHP took over the pursuit in Diamond Bar.

The driver headed onto the northbound 57 Freeway near Brea, and from there, merged onto the 60 Freeway toward Riverside.

At one point, the driver briefly got off the 215 Freeway and took to surface streets, where a CHP cruiser connected with the truck’s back end in an attempt to disable the vehicle. But the truck instead careened into a stopped car and continued on.

From there, the truck got back onto the 215 and sped along the emergency lane in the wrong direction as traffic whizzed by. The driver briefly stopped along the center divider and attempted to climb over the fence, but dashed back to the truck after that failed.

He was eventually able to make a U-turn to head in the right direction, northbound on the 215.

The pursuit finally came to end about 1 p.m. when the truck ran off the road and flipped onto its side. The driver eventually climbed out of the truck cab, put his hands up and surrendered to police.