UPDATE, July 30, 1:53 a.m.: Claremont Police are handling the criminal investigation while Pomona Police were handling the crash scene. The names of the suspect and the deceased were not released late Sunday.
The chase began at 5:40 p.m. in the area of North Towne Avenue and Arrow Highway in Claremont. An officer spotted the suspicious silver pick-up truck, ran the license plate and learned it had been reported stolen out of Rancho Cucamonga, said Claremont Police Sgt. Robert Rauchfuss.
When the officer tried to stop the vehicle, the driver sped off toward Pomona, Rauchfuss said.
A few minutes into the pursuit, police said he struck another vehicle driven by an innocent bystander at North Towne and East La Verne avenues.
With the vehicle disabled, the driver was only able to travel a few more feet. Rauchfuss said the driver jumped out of the vehicle and ran. But officers were able to chase the suspect down, he said.
“We tried to render aid to the bystander, but were unsuccessful,” Rauchfuss said. The bystander died from the impact. The suspect suffered minor to moderate injuries, according to Claremont Police officials.
UPDATE, 10:25 p.m.: KTLA News reports a bystander was struck by the silver truck being pursued and was killed in Pomona, Sunday.
The truck was reported stolen out of Rancho Cucamonga around 4 a.m. Claremont Police identified the truck and attempted to stop it, but the suspect refused to yield. The chase reportedly lasted around a minute.
The suspect reportedly only suffered minor injuries and allegedly tried to run from officers after the crash at the intersection of Towne and La Verne avenues.
The suspect may face charges of evading police, hit and run and manslaughter.
PREVIOUSLY: Police are offering little information about a fatality crash that resulted at the end of a pursuit Sunday evening.
Police did not reveal the nature of the chase that came to a deadly end in the city of Pomona at the intersection of Towne Avenue and La Verne Street. According to the Pomona Police Department, Claremont Police is handling the incident. Whether the chase began in Claremont is not known.
At least one fatality occurred in the crash just before 6 p.m., according to scanner reports. The Los Angeles County Fire Department reported there were people trapped as a result of the crash. Whether the suspect died, or not is yet to be known.
It was unknown when the fatality happened, either after the crash or instantly.
Calls to the Claremont Police Department were not immediately returned.
This story will continue to be updated as information becomes available.
