Robbery suspect on the loose after wild chase ends in Natomas

NATOMAS — One of three robbery suspects who fled on foot after leading police on a chase from Grass Valley to Natomas remains at large, authorities said late Tuesday afternoon.

Two suspects in the robbery were taken into custody following a chase on several highways through multiple counties. The chase ended at Truxel and San Juan roads in Sacramento’s Natomas area when the suspects’ vehicle got stuck.

Officer Chad Hertzell, spokesman for the California Highway Patrol’s North Sacramento area office, said the pursuit of three people in a white commercial box truck began in the Grass Valley area, and traversed Highways 20, 70, 99 and Interstate 5. The truck traveled in the wrong direction on roadways, requiring the CHP to conduct traffic breaks in an effort to prevent collisions.

Officer Greg Tassone, spokesman for the CHP’s Grass Valley office, said the chase began about 12:15 p.m. Tuesday when the Grass Valley Police Department reported officers were trying to stop three suspects in a robbery that had occurred there on Monday. The CHP took over the pursuit after the truck left the city limits.

Tassone said the truck left Grass Valley on Highway 20, and traveled through Penn Valley toward Marysville. It traveled in and out of Marysville and Yuba City, before heading south toward Sacramento. The truck traveled on and off freeways, sometimes heading in the wrong direction on highways and other roadways, and passing traffic on the shoulder.

The CHP deployed spike strips on several occasions, but the truck was able to avoid them, Tassone said. CHP air units assisted in following the truck, allowing CHP vehicles to pull back in the interest of safety and to avoid collisions with other vehicles, he said.

When it reached Sacramento, the truck exited I-5 at Arena Boulevard, then headed south on Truxel Road. The vehicle chase ended at 1:30 p.m., when the truck became high-centered on a median at Truxel and San Juan roads, and the occupants ran off in different directions.

Hertzell said one suspect was located at a Food Max store and another at an area apartment complex. The third person remained at large. He said Grass Valley police were en route to take custody of the men who were arrested.

— Sacramento Bee