A slow-speed police pursuit ended Friday evening when a driver pulled into an auto repair center and onto a hydraulic lift.
"I was legally parked and playing my guitar, but someone had said that... I guess complained that I was making noise," the suspect said of the chase's start in Pacific Beach.
When San Diego police arrived at about 6:15 p.m., the suspect rolled up his Jeep window and left. But he ignored officers as they flipped on their emergency sirens to pull him over.
Asked why he did not stop, the driver said "because he put his lights on. He was intimidating."
Officers had another reason for trying to pull him over.
"He was pulling up to houses and looking at the houses to see if there was something he could steal," said SDPD Sgt. Brandon Broaddus.
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Police pursued him over surface streets and as he ran a red light on Lamont Street.
Turning onto Soledad Mountain Road, the driver successfully avoided spike strips there. On Garnett Avenue, he was heard yelling at driver to get out of his way, police say.
The pursuit continued onto the freeway and into University City — never going over 50 miles per hour.
Finally, spike strips flattened all four of the Jeep's tires, so the vehicle began swerving across the road. The driver decided to turn into the Sears Auto Center at UTC and expertly pulled his car right onto a hydraulic lift.
"And then he just came running and that was it," said witness Jim Schreck. "I was shocked he could park it so perfectly."
Officers soon got the driver out of the car and handcuffed him without a fight. The Jeep was packed with clothes, hats, a surfboard and an open bottle of Jack Daniels.
