barricade

Overnight Carjacking Spree, Standoff End With One Dead

A man who barricaded himself in a Bellflower home early Thursday, forcing evacuations, after two carjackings and at least two crashes has died, according to authorities.

The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department responded to a burglary in the 17600 block of Downey Avenue and believe a thief is in the residence. Authorities said a man wearing only boxer shorts crashed a PT Cruiser in to two pickups in the neighborhood, then ran inside a house. 

A crisis negotiation team and police K-9 units responded to the scene, according to officials. Nearby homes were evacuated and the standoff continued until around 9:30 a.m., when deputies entered the house and found the man dead.

Details regarding a cause of death were not immediately available.

The series of crimes began with two carjackings earlier Thursday morning. In the first altercation, the man stole a Toyota Yaris and crashed about a mile from the barricade site in Bellflower. He then attacked a witness who had stopped to help after the crash, investigators said.

The victim was hospitalized, but details about injuries were not immediately available.

The crime spree continued when the man took the victim's PT Cruiser and crashed a few blocks away. The man tried to jump in the back of one of the pickups involved in the crash, but he was chased out by the driver.

The man broke a window to get into the home. A woman inside hid in a closet before she escaped, according to the sheriff's department.

NBC4's Jonathan Lloyd contributed to this report.

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