1 killed when stolen car slams into pickup truck in South Los Angeles

A stolen car pursued by sheriff’s deputies slammed into a pickup truck in South Los Angeles early Wednesday, killing the driver of the truck.

Deputies were chasing a light blue Toyota Camry east on Century Boulevard about 7 a.m., authorities said. They believed the car had been stolen earlier in Hollywood.

Just east of Vermont Avenue, the Camry struck a Toyota pickup that was traveling west on Century. The pickup hit a Chrysler PT Cruiser and wound up partially on top of the Chrysler’s hood.

The driver of the pickup, identified by coroner’s officials as Miguel Castro Falcon, died at the scene. A 16-year-old passenger in the Camry was immediately arrested, and the 26-year-old male driver fled the scene, but a handgun was recovered. The driver was apprehended more than an hour later in the same neighborhood.

Steve Whitmore, a sheriff’s spokesman, said deputies called off the chase 23 seconds after it began when a watch commander determined it did not meet the criteria for a pursuit. He said officers had monitored the vehicle for more than three minutes without the suspects’ knowledge before initiating the pursuit.

In such situations, Whitmore said, the watch commander strives to make a decision within 90 seconds about whether it is safe to continue a pursuit. The Camry struck the pickup seconds after the chase was called off.

“This is obviously a tragedy,” Whitmore said.

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Sgt. John Hocking said the chase started moments after deputies spotted the Camry and deputies ran its license plate, which came back as stolen.

Deputies then pulled the vehicle over at Century and Denker Avenue, Hocking said. As the officers got out of their car, the Camry sped off, he said.

Dana Victory, 37, who lives a block from the accident site, said she heard the crash and ran outside.

“It was a very big crash, like boom, screech, boom, boom, boom,” she said.

Charles Rhodes, 45, a karate instructor at a YMCA on Vermont Avenue, near the crash scene, and a friend of the Castro family, said he was on Century Boulevard when he saw the accident.

He said sheriff’s deputies were more intent on capturing the suspects than on attending to Castro and the other injured motorists.

“He died sitting in that car,” he said of Castro. “The man was still breathing. I saw his chest rising and falling. I’ll never forget that.”

Rhodes said he did not specifically know who was involved in the crash until Castro’s three sons -- Miguel Jr., 19; Alex, 16; and Freddie, 15, who all study martial arts with Rhodes -- arrived at the scene.

Three people were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, including the 16-year-old passenger in the Camry, authorities said.

Hocking said he did not know how fast the suspects were driving but that vehicle pursuits were often dangerous and should be avoided.

“That’s why we have a policy to try and take suspects into custody without a pursuit,” he said. “It’s just crazy for them to be driving at that speed.”

Los Angeles police, who have jurisdiction of the crash scene, will investigate the accident and are expected to file criminal charges against the two suspects for causing the fatality. The Sheriff’s Department is handling the probe of the pursuit.

--

ari.bloomekatz@latimes.com

richard.winton@latimes.com