Police on Sunday were looking for a man who escaped after leading them on a vehicle pursuit in a stolen pickup and a foot chase in Watsonville.
The incident began at Main Street at Freedom Boulevard around 10:30am when Watsonville Police Capt. Jarrod Pisturino spotted the beat-up blue Ford F150 that police had been alerted to thanks to the Flock camera tracking system which, among other things, reads license plate information.
The male suspect failed to pull over when Pisturino switched on his lights and siren, and sped off on southbound Main Street to westbound West Lake Avenue. After running stop signs and red lights, the suspect worked his way onto southbound Walker Street as more officers joined the pursuit.
The man, who has not been named, charged out to the end of Watsonville Street and took off on foot over the rail trestle into Monterey County over the Pajaro River.
Watsonville Police then got help from Monterey County Sheriff’s deputies and the California Highway Patrol in establishing a perimeter around the spot where the man was last seen racing on foot through the brush and tree-lined levee area.
Police were unable to find the suspect. However, upon searching the pickup, WOD officer Monique Rangel found a ghost handgun behind the driver’s seat and a wrist-rocket style slingshot.
The pickup was reported stolen in Santa Cruz County and is a CHP case. The incident is still under investigation.
