High-speed chase ends with fatal crash on 405 Freeway

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- A high-speed pursuit ended with a deadly crash on the 405 Freeway in Long Beach Monday night.

Officers were called out to the parking lot of a 24 Hour Fitness on the 6700 block of Westminster Boulevard around 7:15 p.m. about a man carrying a gun during a dispute that followed a possible road rage incident.

When officers arrived, the suspect, later identified as Javier Montoya, drove off in a gray 2005 Ford F-150 and led police on a chase.

At one point, the suspect stopped abruptly, causing one of the police vehicles to rear-end his truck. Police say the suspect side-swiped another patrol car and continued driving, swerving in and out of traffic. Investigators say the suspect even used the emergency lane to evade officers. The officers eventually lost the suspect in the area of the northbound 405 Freeway and Woodruff Avenue in Long Beach.

About four hours later, a detective spotted the driver again near La Pat Place and Westminster Boulevard. Montoya entered the 405 Freeway and a second pursuit started.

The suspect ended up crashing on the 405 Freeway near the 710 Freeway interchange. His vehicle struck a light post, went over the side of the freeway and ultimately struck a large tree at the bottom of the embankment.

A male passenger in the suspect's vehicle was killed in the crash. Montoya was arrested.

The incident remains under investigation. Anyone with information was asked to call the Westminster Police Detective Bureau at (714) 898-3315.