Joshua Reneau, 31, of Los Angeles was arrested after a violent police chase through the Hyde Park and Inglewood areas that involved several crashes and a deadly carjacking.
[Ads /]
The first chase started when police were following Reneau as the passenger in a vehicle for his suspected involvement in a robbery and shooting of three people in Reseda that happened three months ago.
Earlier Thursday morning, officers had arrested two other suspects in connection with the Reseda incident and obtained a murder arrest warrant for Reneau.
Detectives were watching his home in the 5900 block of 7th Avenue when they saw him get into the back of a car that then drove away.
A marked LAPD unit tried to pull the car over, but it fled.
During that first chase, the fleeing car soon collided with another vehicle.
Reneau then allegedly jumped out from the passenger side and carjacked an SUV but the driver became entangled in his seatbelt and was dragged alongside his own vehicle for nearly two miles as Reneau continued to flee, police say.
Inglewood resident Ron Holloway saw the end of the chase unfold near his home. He heard sirens and helicopters and then saw a large SUV driving off Florence Avenue and onto his own street, dragging a body "like a rag doll."
[Ads /]
"And I'm seeing he's dragging a body" Holloway recalled. "The body kind of just bounces over the curb there and he shoots full speed down the street."
The SUV drove down the street, but hit a dead end and had to turn around. That's when the carjacking victim's body was dislodged and left on the ground. Paramedics later pronounced him dead at the scene.
The SUV tried to drive past police units, but crashed and flipped over onto its side.
Police say the suspect refused to get out of the vehicle for about two hours. A standoff ensued and the SWAT team and K9 units were brought in but he was eventually taken into custody.
The suspect was being treated for injuries afterward. The deceased victim of the carjacking has not been identified, pending notification of his family.
1 person killed, 2 others wounded in multiple potentially related shootings in Reseda
At least 1 killed, 2 others wounded in multiple potentially related shootings in Reseda, LAPD says
[Ads /]
The driver of the vehicle in the initial chase was arrested and has been identified as Jamal Sutherland, 34, of Los Angeles. He was booked for felony evading with no bail. A passenger in the vehicle, Neosha Reneau, 33, was booked on a misdemeanor warrant with her bail set at $1,000.
The Reseda incident involved a robbery and the shooting of three people on July 29.
Two people were reported shot and wounded in the 18500 block of Sherman Way just after midnight as part of a street robbery, targeting the victim for his jewelry.
A short time later, officers found a third shooting victim in the 18300 block of Saticoy Street. Paramedics brought that victim to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. He was later identified as Earl Hunter, 32.
Police say the incident involved three men - two of them armed with handguns - committing a street robbery, grabbing two necklaces from a victim.
Police later identified the suspects. Early Thursday of this week officers arrested Derek Hall, 28, of West Covina and Miracole Brown, 20, of South Los Angeles for murder and robbery, with bail set at $2 million. Police obtained a warrant for Reneau, and their attempts to arrest him ended with the chase and carjacking.