Pair Held After High-Speed Pursuit in 2 Counties

A high-speed police pursuit crisscrossing freeways and surface streets in two counties ended in Downey on Wednesday afternoon with the arrest of a man and woman under investigation by Ventura County sheriff’s narcotics detectives, authorities said.

They were identified as Jose Concepcion Garcia, 38, and Georgina Ramirez, 24, both of La Habra Heights.

Both were being held Wednesday night in Ventura County Jail on suspicion of selling marijuana and possessing marijuana for sale, Sheriff’s Sgt. Curt Rothschiller said. Bail for each was set at $500,000.

The pair were the target of a five-month investigation by narcotics detectives with the Sheriff’s Department and the Simi Valley Police Department, authorities said.

The 60-mile chase, which reached speeds of more than 100 mph, began about 1:20 p.m. when undercover detectives with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department asked a patrol unit from the Simi Valley Police Department to pull over a maroon GMC Suburban on the eastbound Ronald Reagan Freeway at Yosemite Avenue in Simi Valley, Simi Valley Police Sgt. Bob Gardner said.

At first, the male driver appeared to yield to the black-and-white unit, but then sped away.

Simi Valley Police Officers Kathy Vigil and Paul Fitzpatrick gave pursuit in one patrol car, while Officer Jim Crug followed in another, Gardner said.

Assisted by a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter, the officers tracked the Suburban along the Ronald Reagan Freeway into Los Angeles County before heading south on the Golden State Freeway.

Television stations in Los Angeles broadcast the chase live from a cadre of helicopters as officers hit triple-digit speeds trying to keep pace with the Suburban on the Hollywood Freeway to downtown Los Angeles, then on surface streets into the City of Commerce and then Downey.

Several people targeted for narcotics warrants were probably among those watching. They apparently recognized the Suburban and left their homes before detectives arrived, sources said.

Garcia bumped freeway railings several times, ran numerous red lights and drove on the wrong side of the road, placing numerous people in jeopardy, authorities said.

Ramirez threw evidence from the vehicle during the pursuit, authorities added.

The chase ended about 2:05 p.m. when the driver of the Suburban, without explanation, slowed and pulled into a gas station at the intersection of Stewart and Gray Road and Paramount Boulevard in Downey, Gardner said.

Officers pulled in behind and the Suburban’s driver got out and placed his hands on the side of the vehicle before being ordered to the ground by officers, who took him into custody, Gardner said.

Ramirez was also taken into custody at gunpoint after she got out the vehicle.

“We caught them, but they were arrested by the Sheriff’s Department,” Gardner said.

Authorities seized large quantities of marijuana, Rothschiller said.

The investigation is continuing, and authorities said they expected to serve more warrants in connection with the case.