A 66-year-old woman was left with life-threatening injuries after a driver fleeing San Diego police slammed head-on into the car she was riding in on Imperial Avenue on Monday afternoon. The woman, a passenger in a Toyota Camry, suffered perforated organs and underwent surgery, while the Camry’s 61-year-old driver sustained a fractured rib. The crash happened after officers called off a ground pursuit of a Jeep Cherokee that had crossed into oncoming lanes, and the Jeep then struck the Camry head-on in the 6400 block of Imperial Avenue. The 20-year-old suspect fled on foot but was quickly taken into custody.
According to ABC 10News San Diego, San Diego Police Department officers had been pursuing the Jeep Cherokee after its driver crossed into oncoming westbound lanes on Imperial Avenue, prompting officers to call off the ground pursuit while an SDPD airborne unit continued tracking the vehicle. The outlet reported that alcohol and drug impairment were ruled out as factors in the crash, and that the collision remains under investigation by SDPD’s traffic division. Investigators are asking anyone with information to contact San Diego County Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. The suspect, a 20-year-old man, was taken into custody after fleeing the scene on foot and reported only head pain.
