A suspect who allegedly threatened police at the LAPD's Southwest station led officers on a chase through South Los Angeles on Thursday, whizzing through traffic on neighborhood streets and even driving on a sidewalk before crashing into another car and being violently torn from his vehicle by a swarm of officers.
"The suspect went into the Southwest police station and made a criminal threat, and that is where all this started," said Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Richard French.
The suspect showed up at the station just before 2 p.m., then fled, with officers in pursuit, French said.
The vehicle struck several other cars, including at least one police cruiser, during the pursuit. And, one police cruiser struck a palm tree.
The subject, often on the wrong side of the road, drove around the area for about 20 minutes. A group of officers surrounded the car after it crashed near 37th Street and Normandie Avenue.
Officers quickly pinned the suspect in with patrol cars, then swarmed to the vehicle with guns drawn.
The suspect could be seen fighting with officers trying to pull him from the vehicle. Officers broke windows on the vehicle as they tried to arrest him. A team of officers eventually got him onto the ground, where the suspect appeared to continue struggling.
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He was eventually handcuffed, and was carried to a patrol car. A small pool of blood was left on the street where the suspect was arrested.
Tonsha Wilcher, 38, was booked for a felony offense, and was held on $30,000 bail, according to the sheriff's department. He was being treated for injuries.
