14-year-old saved as flames engulf vehicle in deadly police chase, California cops say
A car being sought in connection with an earlier murder burst into flames after crashing in a police chase, killing two men inside, California sheriff’s officials reported.
But pursuing deputies pulled a 14-year-old girl from the back seat moments before flames engulfed the car.
The 2007 Toyota Camry was carjacked in Oakland on Sunday, June 11, Alameda County sheriff’s officials said in a news release posted by the Manteca Police Department.
Investigators linked the vehicle to the murder of a woman at 10:04 p.m. Sunday, Manteca police said. The woman walked into a business before collapsing and dying of a gunshot wound.
At 1:45 a.m. Monday, Alameda County sheriff’s deputies spotted the Toyota Camry in Hayward and began chasing it after the driver sped off, the release said.
The pursuit continued into San Leandro, where city police deployed a spike strip, deputies said. The driver crashed into a tree trying to avoid the spikes.
As the car began to smoke, deputies saw a 14-year-old girl trying to escape, but her foot had become trapped, the release said.
They rescued the girl, but could not rouse the two men unconscious in the front seat before the car burst into flames, sheriff’s officials said. They were pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators later recovered a handgun from the front seat of the charred vehicle, the release said.
San Leandro is a city about 20 miles southeast of San Francisco.
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