94-year-old victim in East LA carjacking that sparked wild chase speaks out: 'He told me, 'Get out!'

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A 94-year-old man was the victim of a violent carjacking Wednesday in East Los Angeles, a crime that kicked off a dangerous chase that ended with deputies shooting the suspect.

The incident started around 2:20 p.m. when deputies spotted a vehicle that had been stolen that morning.

The vehicle - a grey sedan - belongs to Gustavo Herrera Gomez.

He spoke with Eyewitness News on Thursday about the incident, saying it all started when he was moving his car and placing a trash bin to hold his parking spot. He said he was moving the car to go buy some groceries. That's when the suspect suddenly approached him.

"He told me, 'Get out! Get out!"

Gomez got out of the vehicle and in seconds, the suspect jumped in and took off.

"I'm human, I'm a Catholic ... but it hurts when something so awful happens," said Gomez, who wasn't injured during the ordeal.

He quickly called police and filed a stolen vehicle report.

The start of a chaotic chase

After the suspect, who hasn't been identified, took off in Gomez's car - a wild chase ensued.

Deputies tried to pull the suspect over. It stopped but then the driver hit reverse, slamming into the sheriff's patrol vehicle, according to Lt. Patricia Thomas, with the LASD Homicide Bureau.

That was considered an assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, Thomas said.

The pursuit made its way northbound on the 710 Freeway in the East L.A. area. The driver then transitioned onto the westbound 10 Freeway in light traffic.

After entering the 101 Freeway, the suspect exited at Alameda Street where he allegedly repeated the behavior again, stopping and reversing into multiple patrol vehicles.

The chase continued into the Pico-Union area, where he weaved between cars in traffic and then drove up onto a sidewalk near Vermont and Venice and crashed into a light pole, then was quickly wedged in by a deputy SUV on his back bumper.

He apparently kept hitting the gas in reverse, as the car's wheels were spinning in place, sending up smoke from the tires.

Deputies open fire

At one point, the suspect appeared to put one hand out the window and was talking to the deputies, but with the wheels still sending up smoke, they opened fire multiple times.

"The suspect appeared to be struck in traffic, where he drove onto the sidewalk, and struck a light pole and reversed into a patrol vehicle once again, resulting in a deputy-involved shooting," Thomas said.

Footage from AIR7 appeared to show at least two deputies discharge their weapons at least 11 times. At least five bullet holes could be seen in the front windshield after penetrating through the rear window and the interior. It was unclear how many rounds struck the suspect.

Four deputies were on scene at the end of the chase.

The driver was taken to a local hospital. At a briefing on Wednesday, he was described as being in critical condition.

No deputies were reported injured in the confrontation. The California Department of Justice is investigating the incident.