COUNTYWIDE : 2 Held After Police Chase Stolen Pickups
Two men driving pickup trucks believed to have been stolen were arrested on suspicion of grand theft and evading arrest Friday after leading officers on a chase through Orange County during the morning commute hour.
Officers patrolling the Mesa Verde housing tract in Costa Mesa spotted two Mazda pickups following each other closely, Costa Mesa Police Lt. Sam Cordiero said.
The two drivers saw the officers, split up and sped away, he said.
The driver of one pickup was apprehended in Costa Mesa, said Cordiero, who identified him as John Guthrie, 21, of Costa Mesa.
Police determined that the truck had been stolen in Fountain Valley, Cordiero said.
Costa Mesa undercover officers found the second truck, also believed to be stolen, parked and unoccupied at a Garden Grove residence and staked out the home. When the driver, identified as Tino Frieboth, 21, of Santa Ana, returned to the pickup, he spotted the unmarked cars, Cordiero said.
Frieboth jumped into the truck and led police from Garden Grove, Santa Ana and Orange, as well as California Highway Patrol officers, on a 40-minute chase through northern Orange County, Cordiero said.
The pursuit ended about 8 a.m. on Cambridge Street and Katella Avenue in Orange, when Frieboth’s pickup apparently ran out of gas, police said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
