CHARLOTTE – Chopper 9 Skyzoom followed a two-hour high-speed police chase Wednesday in which a man drove recklessly through the Carolinas and hit two other drivers. Authorities said the man also stole four vehicles during the chase.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department helicopter initially began following a vehicle after a break-in was reported shortly before 11 a.m. Authorities said a Jeep was stolen.
>> CMPD released a sequence of events during the high-speed chase in Charlotte on Wednesday. Click on the timeline below.
Chopper 9 then saw a white pickup truck, which police said was also stolen, speeding and turning on Interstate 77 near Clanton Road in south Charlotte shortly before noon.
A short time later, the truck went to a Walmart on South Tryon Street, where the driver jumped out and stole a gold car in the parking lot. He left a woman behind in the pickup truck.
The woman who owned the car could be seen from Chopper 9 clinging to the passenger door before the suspect took off.
“They came around the corner in that pickup truck, he got out, he jumped into my car, the girl’s car that was,” said the owner of the car.
The car then headed north on South Boulevard, where it could be seen driving on a curb, close to a bystander.
After that, the car drove through the parking lot of an apartment complex in the South End before the driver headed north to Charlotte. Chopper 9 Skyzoom then spotted the car on Statesville Road approaching Interstate 85.
The driver then traveled southbound on I-77, where the car could be seen speeding between lanes. The car then returned to the South End, swerving between other drivers.
Chopper 9 Skyzoom was then on top of the car he was driving uptown before the driver headed back to south Charlotte. Then, around 12:45 p.m., the vehicle was seen driving near Park and Johnston roads.
After that, shortly before 1 p.m., the driver headed down US 521 toward Indian Land in South Carolina. Minutes later, the driver turned around and headed back to North Carolina.
WATCH: Chopper 9 Skyzoom is LIVE on a vehicle driving recklessly across North and South Carolina. The new video shows the driver stealing another car in the chase that lasted about an hour and a half. LIVE UPDATES –> pic.twitter.com/NIj2OdKHHY
— WSOCTV (@wsoctv) July 6, 2022
Shortly after 1 p.m., the driver crashed into another vehicle at the intersection of Ballantyne Commons Parkway and Johnston Road. He tried to get the person out of the other car, who was clearly injured with the airbags deployed.
The suspect then began running toward other cars and eventually stole an SUV and headed down Johnston Road. It was the fourth vehicle he stole on Wednesday.
Chopper 9 saw police follow the vehicle on Fairview Road near Colony Road. The driver was driving erratically and swerving around other vehicles.
One driver, Abrahan Nassar, rammed his pickup truck into the back of the stolen SUV in an attempt to end the pursuit. But Nassar’s engine started smoking on impact and broke down on the road.
“I see the guy just cut off and almost hit a couple of cars … that’s when I said, ‘You know what, I’m going to try to stop him,'” the pickup truck driver told Jason Stoogenke of Action 9.
Then, shortly before 1:30 p.m., the driver headed onto East Boulevard in Dilworth.
Moments later, the vehicle crashed into another SUV at the intersection of South and East boulevards. The driver could be seen jumping out and surrendering to police.
Several CMPD patrol SUVs surrounded the intersection and took him into custody. Authorities have not said what charges the suspect will face.
One question some are asking is why the police didn’t use the PIT maneuver, where they hit the back corner of the car to stop it. CMPD said it cannot use this maneuver by policy. State police can use it, but Channel 9 learned they were never asked to get involved in Wednesday’s chase.
Full statement from CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings:
“It is absolutely appalling that someone would have such a disregard for the general public. CMPD’s pursuit policy prohibited us from pursuing this suspect to the point where the suspect stole the last vehicle, not knowing if a carjacking had occurred. In these situations, the police are in a no-win situation. While this subject poses a danger to the public, a police pursuit could have increased that danger. Thanks to the CMPD aviation team and WSOC who they helped us gain control of the situation from the sky. I am proud of our CMPD response in providing closure without serious injury.”
>> Watch the path Chopper 9 Skyzoom took as it followed the police chase through Charlotte below (Courtesy: FlightAware).
Channel 9 reached out to CMPD for more information on the charges the suspect will face, but we have not heard back at this time.
Check back with wsoctv.com for updates.
‘We have to weigh options’: CMPD gives update after police chase
CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings gave an update Wednesday afternoon after an hours-long police chase.
As per policy, he said they do not pursue vehicles unless life is in danger. He said the policy was followed precisely.
“The reason we have policies is to make sure everyone gets home. I know there will be questions about the weather,” Jennings said.
He said it’s rare to see someone continue to drive erratically when patrol cars are taken out of the mix. He also added that stop sticks were used several times to try to end the chase.
“We have to weigh the options and which is the most dangerous for the public. The last thing I want to do is have an officer behind a vehicle that causes driving to escalate, and someone gets seriously injured or killed,” Jennings said.
>> Watch the full CMPD press conference in the video below.
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