Chase Ends With Crash; Driver Held
An early-morning car chase through residential Oxnard on Tuesday ended when the fleeing driver crashed, fled on foot and was caught by Oxnard police.
Police arrested Rigoberto Melgoza Valencia, 21, of Oxnard about 3 a.m., according to a report by Oxnard police. Valencia refused to pull over during a routine traffic stop and led officers on an 18-minute chase that reached speeds of 75 mph, police said.
The car crashed on the railroad tracks at Vineyard Avenue just east of Oxnard Avenue, and Valencia bolted from the car carrying a loaded .44-caliber revolver, police said.
But police caught Valencia and arrested him on suspicion of hit-and-run driving, possession of a loaded handgun, and felony evading, police said.
He was being held Tuesday evening in Ventura County Jail in lieu of $10,000 bail.
Three passengers in the car, two adults and one juvenile, were questioned and released, police said. No one was seriously hurt in the incident.
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