Officers Lose Gun, Suspects and Car

California Highway Patrol officers lost three suspects, a gun, and a car after a foot chase went awry in Woodland Hills on Friday morning.

One of the suspects, George Mathis, 33, is a parolee wanted on a no-bail warrant for drug trafficking and weapons charges, the CHP said. The handgun in question belonged to one of the officers--a four-year CHP veteran who was training a young officer with just a few weeks of street experience, CHP Sgt. John Lago said.

The sergeant gave the following account:

At about 6 a.m., the two officers stopped the driver of a blue Dodge Aries for making an illegal left turn and possibly driving under the influence. Mathis, who was driving the car and accompanied by two women, stopped in a Topanga Canyon Boulevard parking lot just south of the Ventura Freeway. When the officers asked for Mathis’ identification, he could not produce a license, but told them his name.

The veteran officer went back to the patrol car, ran a check on the name and found that Mathis was wanted. When the officer returned to the Dodge, Mathis bolted down nearby Clarendon Street on foot, with both officers running after him.

About 1,000 feet into the pursuit, the more experienced officer realized that his service revolver had fallen out of its holster; because the other officer was just a trainee, both men had to give up the chase and let Mathis escape.

“It was a training issue,” Lago said. “He was with a new kid.”

The trouble didn’t end there. While the officers were running after Mathis, one of the two women in the Aries jumped out and grabbed the gun, and the two drove east on Ventura Boulevard, according to a witness who was drinking coffee at a nearby Starbucks.

“It all just went to [pieces] right away,” Lago said.

Numerous CHP and Los Angeles Police Department officers, as well as a helicopter, scoured the area but found nothing. They abandoned the search after 2 1/2 hours.

Mathis is described as African American, 5 foot 9, and a muscular 170 pounds with short hair. He was wearing a black jacket, white T-shirt and black shorts. The women were said to be African American and in their 30s. The car is missing the lock on its back trunk, Lago said, and CHP officials believe it may be stolen.

Lago said the names of the officers will not be released for safety reasons until the suspects are in custody.

CHP officials, meanwhile, are investigating why the gun fell from the officer’s hip. Lago said the officer “vehemently denies” unfastening the three-snap holster, which, though an aftermarket brand, is one that meets with department approval, Lago said.

“Two of the snaps we believe at this point were defective,” Lago said. “[But] we don’t know yet.”

Anyone with information about the fugitives is asked to call the CHP Investigative Services Unit at (323) 644-9550.