Man flees stolen vehicle in Laguna, leads police on beach chase, then disappears

Police are looking for a man who fled from a stolen vehicle during a traffic stop Sunday in Laguna Beach, authorities said.

Laguna Beach police were alerted that a 1998 Honda CR-V stolen from Santa Ana was heading into the city just before 5 p.m. When an officer pulled over the vehicle in the 100 block of St. Ann’s Drive, a man got out and ran west toward the beach, said Sgt. Jim Cota.

The officer chased the man on the sand for about 100 yards before the man ran up a set of private stairs and headed east toward Gaviota Drive, Cota said.

Police searched the 700 block of Gaviota with help from an Anaheim Police Department helicopter crew and a Newport Beach police K-9 unit but were unable to find the man.

Police described him as bald and wearing black pants and a gray shirt.

hannah.fry@latimes.com

Twitter: @HannahFryTCN