A suspect in California stole a police cruiser and drove off during an arrest attempt this week. The footage shows officers chasing the man on foot before he doubled back toward a row of parked patrol cars, climbed into one that had been left unlocked, and drove away before officers could stop him.
The video begins mid-chase, so it is unclear how long officers had been pursuing the suspect on foot. As he sped off in the stolen cruiser, the person recording the video can be heard yelling toward the officers, “Bro, he stole your car!”
Another marked patrol vehicle is seen driving past the officer left behind moments later, apparently without realizing what had just happened.
According to CBS Sacramento, police said officers responded around 12:30 p.m. to a vandalism report near Marysville Boulevard and South Avenue, where a woman said a man threw an object at her car, chased her with a stick, and struck one of her windows.
When officers located a suspect matching the description and tried to detain him, police said he ran on foot before gaining access to a nearby marked patrol vehicle and driving off.
The vehicle belonged to an officer who was actively responding to the vandalism call. The outlet noted that the patrol vehicle had a flat right rear tire as the pursuit began near downtown Sacramento. The suspect then led officers south on Highway 99, passing through Elk Grove and Galt before the California Highway Patrol took over the pursuit.
The chase lasted more than an hour and ended in Lodi, where the suspect pulled over and surrendered without further incident.
Police had the 28-year-old suspect identified as Isaac Paval of Sacramento. After he was transported to a hospital for a check, he was booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on several felony charges. Officials said Paval has a prior criminal record and was on pretrial probation tied to a DUI case at the time of the incident, per Public Safety News.
Internet Reacts to the California Cruiser Theft
Many commenters compared the moment to a video game. One person wrote, “GTA 6 looking hyper realistic.” Another joked, “All those gta skills not going to waste.”
Some focused on the person filming the video. One commenter wrote, “Cameraman just hyping up all sides for the love of the game.”
A few comments turned toward the officers involved. One person wrote, “I absolutely love how the cops were basically just like ‘this joker isn’t gonna get too far’ just keeping him in sight as they walk after him, then homeboy hops in the cruiser and switched up the narrative.” Another simply put it, “Bro used ancient tricks.”
A different commenter placed the blame elsewhere, writing, “That’s the police fault. They all chill and just strolling after him till he got in their car.”
Much of the footage’s appeal comes from the absurdity of the circumstances of the whole scenario. Suspects who flee on foot seldom manage to jack a police car on the way. But this one somehow did just that, using the open passenger door of the vehicle to do so, instead of any sort of break-in or forced entry.
