Driver, 18, arrested after police chase stolen car

The driver of the stolen car spun out of control after throwing a handgun out the window and leading police on a 12-minute pursuit from Boynton Beach to Boca Raton late Wednesday night.

Morris Johnson Jr., an 18-year-old with nine felony convictions, crashed a Nissan Altima that had been carjacked earlier in the day on Airport Road in Boca Raton, police said. He is now jailed on $92,000 bond.

Also in the car was a female passenger who had just met Johnson on Instagram, a police report said. She is not being charged.

Johnson is charged with fleeing and eluding, grand theft auto, marijuana possession, driving without a license and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

He has not been charged in connection with the carjacking, said Stephanie Slater, a spokeswoman for the Boynton Beach Police Department.

“At this point, all we can confirm is that Johnson was driving a vehicle that had been taken during a carjacking,” Slater said.

The carjacking happened about 11 a.m. Wednesday in Boynton Beach.

Police saw the stolen Nissan at about 9:30 p.m. on North Seacrest Boulevard and began to follow, a police report said.

The Nissan sped up and when police activated their emergency lights, it sped southbound on Interstate 95, exited at Congress Avenue then re-entered I-95 and continued southward at up to 100 mph, police said.

With police in pursuit, the driver exited at Glades Road and took that to Airport Road. It was along that stretch that police saw someone throw a handgun out the car window, the report said.

“The driver then lost control of the vehicle just north of the Cinemark Movie Theater,” Slater said. “The male driver and female passenger were taken into custody at 9:44 p.m.”

Police found the discarded Glock 17 south of the movie theater.