An armed man suspected of stealing a car in Washington State on Monday lead to a police chase that ended with patrol vehicles catching on fire.
The incident began Monday when police said a man used a gun to steal a car at a Tacoma-area park. Officers chased the suspect on to Interstate 5 in Tacoma and followed the vehicle across several cities before the pursuit ended with cars in flames, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies used the owner’s Air Tag product from Apple to track the vehicle at a Federal Way shopping complex, nearly 15 miles north of the location where it was reported stolen. When officers arrived at the shopping complex, the carjacker ran over spike strips while driving, losing the rear tire, according to the sheriff’s office.
Officers chased the suspect for several miles before the pursuit went onto the freeway where a deputy caused the suspect’s car to crash. The driver suspect ran away leaving behind a female passenger as the vehicle caught fire before officers “quickly apprehended” the male suspect.
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“Deputies rescued the woman before the car became fully engulfed,” the office wrote in a press release.
The fire spread to two nearby patrol cars through the dry grass between them. Officers extinguished one of the patrol cars and fire officials cleared the other two vehicles of flames. No deputies were injured.
The incident resulted in the blocking of all southbound I-5 lanes until two lanes resumed around 1:40 p.m. All lanes were reopened shortly before 3 p.m.
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Both suspects were hospitalized for injuries received during the crash, according to the statement. The vehicle’s owners identified the carjacker to officers and he was expected to be booked after he is medically cleared, police said.
Washington ranks third in the nation for the number of vehicles stolen last year, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s 2022 Vehicle Theft Trend Report. The report published in March said 46,939 vehicles were stolen in the state last year out of a little over a million nationwide. Washington’s rate falls behind California and Texas which are the two most-populous U.S. states.