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Man takes his repossessed car on wild, 100-mph chase to his apartment, deputies say

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Ever seen a car being towed and wondered what would happen if the vehicle’s owner tried to stop it?

Well, according to San Bernardino County sheriff’s officials, that’s what 23-year-old Daniel Avilez did Tuesday, and then some.

Authorities say that at about 11 p.m. Tuesday, Avilez found that a tow truck driver had hooked up his car in order to repossess it on behalf of the company that financed it. Avilez demanded that the car be released, the tow truck operator refused.

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But Avilez was undeterred, authorities say. He allegedly told the tow truck driver he had a gun, then released the vehicle himself and sped off.

However, unbeknownst to Avilez, the tow truck driver had attached a GPS tracking device to the car. As deputies interviewed the driver, a sheriff’s helicopter was able to locate Avilez’s car on the 10 Freeway, the department said in a statement.

Deputies in patrol cars tried to pull Avilez over, but he didn’t stop, officials said. The chase stretched across 10 miles and reached speeds over 100 mph as Avilez avoided cars and allegedly drove on the wrong side of the road.

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Authorities say Avilez finally bailed out of the vehicle in San Bernardino and then simply ran home. Deputies took him into custody at his apartment without incident and booked him on suspicion of felony evading police and carjacking, officials said. He’s being held on $250,000 bail and is due in court Thursday.

Court records show Avilez also has a pending criminal case from 2015 – for evading police.

For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna.

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