Suspected Carjacker Slain After 2-Hour Chase

A suspected carjacker was shot to death by police early Tuesday as he tried to run over officers and a man he had taken hostage, police said.

The man died after seven or eight police officers from Azusa and Glendora opened fire as he drove the truck toward them and a former hostage lying in his path, police said.

The incident began shortly before midnight when officers tried to stop a car occupied by two men on West 3rd Street and concluded more than two hours later.

Their pursuit ended when the car crashed into a fence in the 1100 block of West 3rd Street and the suspect fled. “The other man said he was a carjacking victim and the suspect was armed with one or perhaps two handguns,” said Azusa Police Lt. Sam Gonzalez.

As authorities sealed off the area, the suspect forced his way into a home in the 1000 block of West 3rd Street, then fled out the back door.

He entered another residence in the 900 block about 2 a.m., where he put on a woman’s wig and forced a man into his truck, Gonzalez said.

But as police moved in, the hostage jumped from the truck. The driver backed the truck up a long driveway toward officers and the hostage who had fallen on an injured ankle, Gonzalez said.

The man, who was not identified, was pronounced dead at the scene. Sheriff’s homicide detectives are investigating the shooting.