Two California Highway Patrol officers were injured Thursday morning when a driver being pursued from Orange County struck them in the coastal community of Solana Beach in San Diego County.
Dispatchers received a call around 4:20 a.m. from a person who reported an armed robbery at a Chevron on Alicia Parkway near the 5 Freeway in the Laguna Hills area, Orange County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Carrie Braun said.
The caller also reported that a man armed with a gun left the area in a vehicle, described as a black Dodge Charger, Braun said, adding that investigators later determined that the suspect was involved in a road rage incident -- not a robbery -- and threatened the victims with a gun in the parking lot of the Chevron before taking off, City News Service reported.
Police Chases
Video from Southern California's police pursuits and follow-ups on what happened after the chase
No injuries were reported from that incident.
Deputies responded to the area and located the vehicle a short time later, but the driver sped south on the 5 Freeway, Braun said. The driver exited at Lomas Santa Fe Drive around 5 a.m.
Two CHP officers spotted the car and confronted the driver, who struck the officers with the car. Both officers were taken to a hospital with moderate injuries, one with a broken ankle, NBC7 reported.
The vehicle involved in the pursuit was found unoccupied near the intersection of La Floresta and Linea Del Cielo.
The suspect was located around 6:10 a.m. and taken into custody, Braun said.
Further details about the suspect and where he was located were not immediately available.
