SANTA CRUZ — A man managed to evade police Friday morning in Santa Cruz after allegedly leading them on a high-speed chase in a stolen Mercedes Benz, police said.
The incident began just before 8 a.m. on Nobel Drive on the west side of Santa Cruz when police spotted Sean Oliver sleeping in stolen white Mercedes Benz C350. As detectives boxed in the Mercedes, Oliver woke up, started the car and rammed one of the detective’s vehicles, according to police. The Mercedes then struck a tree and rock retaining wall as Oliver drove up on the sidewalk and managed to speed away.
The short pursuit was quickly called off by police due to the suspect’s hazardous driving, which included high speeds and running stop signs. After smashing into one car near Nobel Drive, Oliver made his way onto Sherman Street off of King Street about a mile away. He then jumped from the moving car and took off on foot, leaving the Mercedes rolling on its own.
“I heard this big crash and then saw the white car rolling by itself with no one in it,” said a neighbor who chose not to reveal his name. “I saw the man running away between those homes. I jumped into the car and stomped on the brake and threw it in park.”
Indeed, the neighbor stopped the car within inches of bumping into a parked minivan. Somewhere during the action the suspect clipped a Sheriff deputy’s unmarked truck.
Sean Oliver
Police from several agencies flooded the area and set up a perimeter. They called in an officer with a K-9. With guns drawn, a team of police followed the K-9 around the neighborhood as the dog sniffed out the suspect’s trail.
After about an hour police called off the search and came up empty-handed, police said.
Oliver has a felony warrant and is wanted for a recent residential burglary. There will also be additional charges from Friday’s incident including evading an officer, possession of a stolen vehicle, vandalism, and possession of drugs for sales.
Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Oliver is asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at 471-1121.
