Driver in livestreamed street takeover was in stolen car

Los Angeles police are seeking a man who they say did burnouts in a stolen vehicle during a street takeover in South L.A. that was livestreamed on social media.

About 10:50 p.m. April 30, officers saw the driver of a 2022 Dodge Charger doing burnouts in a street takeover at Vernon Avenue and Figueroa Street in Vermont Square, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. At least 50 people were involved in the sideshow, Det. Juan Campos said, adding that the driver was doing burnouts for at least 10 minutes. Police tried to stop him, but he fled.

The Dodge had a license plate that had been issued to an Infiniti, officers said. The car was found Friday in the area of Vernon and McKinley avenues, still with an Infiniti license plate. Police checked the VIN and discovered the car had been stolen from Downey, they said.

Authorities did not specify which social media platform or accounts the street takeover was livestreamed, but the LAPD posted clips from the video on the agency’s accounts.

The driver was described as a man 18 to 25 years old with black hair and a mustache, according to the LAPD. Police have urged anyone with information to contact Campos at (213) 8333713 or 31480@lapd.online or contact the Central Traffic Division watch commander at (213) 833-3746.

Authorities, including Compton Mayor Emma Sharif and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, have vowed to crack down on illegal street takeovers in the area.

“These street takeovers have plagued our community for far too long,” Sharif said. “In the past, most of the participants have not been from our city but have come here to take part in these takeovers and other senseless crimes.”

Several people have died during or near street takeovers in the last year as the sideshows became a growing problem, with hundreds more per year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when streets were empty during lockdowns.