SHERMAN OAKS : Chase Ends in Fiery Crash and Arrest

A high-speed chase through twisting canyon roads ended in Sherman Oaks early Thursday when a Jaguar driven by a suspected car thief crashed and the vehicle burst into flames, police said.

Lars Johnson, 25, of Los Angeles was arrested on suspicion of grand theft auto and evading arrest, Beverly Hills Police Lt. Joe Lombardi said. Johnson, who was on parole, was listed in fair condition in the jail ward at County-USC Medical Center, where he was being held without bail, authorities said.

Beverly Hills police became suspicious about 1 a.m. when they saw a man driving a black 1990 Jaguar with the headlights out, Lombardi said. The man eluded officers twice before they spotted him about 1:40 a.m. and followed him north on Beverly Glen Boulevard at speeds exceeding 80 m.p.h.

The driver lost control of the car, which had been reported stolen in Malibu five days earlier, and crashed into a street light and a tree near Beverly Glen and Millbrook Drive, police said. He was ejected and the car was destroyed, Lombardi said.