Highway 99 chase from Sac to Stockton ends in crash, arrest

SACRAMENTO — A high-speed chase that lasted a half-hour beginning in south Sacramento ended Thursday after the suspects crashed into a roadway guard rail in Stockton.

The chase started around 7:15 p.m. in the area of 47th Avenue and Highway 99 in the Lemon Hill section of unincorporated Sacramento, according to Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Sgt. Tess Deterding.

She said deputies responded “when they voiced on the radio that a shot was heard nearby and a vehicle was seen leaving the area at a high rate of speed.” Deputies were able to locate the vehicle and a pursuit ensued, she said.

Deterding said the California Highway Patrol took over the chase when it crossed the Sacramento-San Joaquin county line just south of Galt.

The vehicle, a gray Dodge Caliber hatchback, topped speeds of 100 mph as it drove through Elk Grove, Galt and Lodi.

A CHP fixed-wing aircraft — monitoring protests in downtown Sacramento related to police brutality — caught up to the pursuit between Lodi and Stockton.

By 7:40 p.m., the pursuit involving the suspects’ vehicle, several CHP vehicles and the sheriff’s helicopter exited the freeway at Cherokee Lane in Stockton. That’s when the driver lost control of the car and crashed into a guard rail, according to CHP’s Stockton office.

The CHP said two people inside the vehicle were not injured and were arrested. Officers, who made the comments in a social media post, did not provide further details on the suspects or what charges they may be facing.