Suspect steals truck, victim tracks it using location of cell phone left in vehicle

Alleged thief leads pursuit, crashes and eludes arrest

The suspect who crashed a truck 34 miles away from where he stole it avoided arrest Tuesday.

The owner of the truck had been on a run at Lake Oroville when the suspect stole his truck, Yuba-sutter California Highway Patrol officer Dan Yeager said.

The victim had left his personal cell phone in the truck and was able to track its location using his work phone, Yeager said. The victim, who said he is a Butte County Calfire official, was able to tell officers that his truck was in Yuba County – in a driveway between Highway 20 and Kimball Lane.

Once enough officers responded to the driveway, the suspect tried driving out, noticed police, and drove around them on a lawn area, Yaeger said. He led officers on a highspeed chase before crashing head-on into a metal pole at the opening of an orchard, and then continuing down a driveway just before Armstrong Road. He drove down that The truck stolen from Lake Oroville is pulled out of a ditch after it was crashed by a suspect on Tuesday.

driveway, further into an orchard, before crashing into a ditch and fleeing on foot.

When police caught up to the truck, the suspect was gone, Yaeger said. They used a police dog and helicopter to search

the nearby farm land for about 45 minutes before suspending the search. No officers or other motorists were injured.

Officers are still searching for the suspect and it remains under investigation.

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