Driver in stolen car arrested after wrong-way chase on I-80
Inside the Dodge Charger officers found a stolen gun loaded with a high-capacity magazine, as well as tools commonly used to steal cars, police said.
Officers came across the vehicle on Louisiana Street in Vallejo around 6 p.m. on July 18, police said. The car was blocking an alley and missing a front license plate, its windows tinted illegally.
As officers approached the car, they noticed the driver's ski mask; the driver reversed and took off, prompting the pursuit on the freeway, police said. During the chase, officers performed a maneuver to stop the fleeing vehicle, clipping the side of the car's rear fender and disabling it near the Georgia Street exit.
Officers then arrested the driver and searched the car, where they found the gun under the driver's seat, police said. A records check revealed that the gun was stolen in Concord.
Officers also found a backpack containing a car key reprogramming device, generic key fobs and window punch tools — items commonly used in organized auto theft, police said. A records check showed the car was stolen in Oakland. The rear license plate was also stolen.
The driver, who was out on bail in connection with a prior pursuit in Vallejo that ended in a carjacking and an assault on a Berkeley police officer, did not have a valid driver's license, police said. Police did not release further details about the prior incident.
The driver was booked into Solano County Jail on suspicion of multiple felonies, including possession of a stolen gun, auto theft and felony evasion, police said.
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