2 Carjacking Suspects, Both 15, End Police Chase in Crash

Two youths suspected in a Santa Monica carjacking led police on a 20-minute chase that ended when the stolen vehicle ran a red light and broadsided another car at a Reseda intersection, injuring three people, authorities said.

One police officer involved in the chase crashed his vehicle at the intersection of Ventura Boulevard and Cedros Avenue, said Sgt. Paul Sciarrillo of the Los Angeles Police Department. He was not injured.

The boys, both 15 years old and suspected gang members, allegedly stole a 1982 Oldsmobile during an armed robbery at 9:45 p.m. Saturday night, police said.

“They simulated a handgun by pointing their fingers through sweaters at an elderly man driving the car,” said an unidentified patrol officer. The suspects are reportedly runaways from a Santa Monica group home for troubled teen-agers who may have come to the San Fernando Valley because the driver has relatives in Reseda, he added.

The chase came to an abrupt halt at the intersection of Wilbur Avenue and Sherman Way, when they ran a red light and slammed into a car crossing the intersection, police said.

One of the injured passengers, a woman who suffered facial cuts and bruises, was treated at Northridge Hospital Medical Center.

The boys, who reportedly laughed as they were arrested, were booked on suspicion of armed robbery, felony evading and grand theft auto. They were taken into custody by the Santa Monica Police Department after the crash, Sciarrillo said.