Truck Theft Suspect Dies in Collision

A truck theft suspect who led police on a chase that began in Yorba Linda and passed through six cities was killed Sunday when the stolen pickup he was driving crashed in Commerce, police said.

Authorities declined to identify the suspect, who died shortly after the pickup collided with a van and another vehicle at the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Garfield Avenue.

Three passengers in the van were injured. Authorities said they were hospitalized but their injuries were not life-threatening. The driver of the car was not injured.

The chase began about 8:25 a.m. when Brea police spotted a red Mazda pickup truck that had been reported stolen to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department three days earlier, police said.

Officers tried to stop the vehicle in the 4700 block of Green Crest Drive in Yorba Linda but the driver sped away, leading police on a chase through Yorba Linda, Brea, La Habra, Montebello, Whittier and Commerce.

The pursuit covered about 25 miles and reached speeds up to 90 m.p.h., police said.