STANFORD STREET — The hunt for a man accused of stealing a luxury sports car in West Hollywood ended Thursday morning when Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies used gas to force him from the car, which had pulled to a stop on Stanford Street.
The chase began at 1 a.m. in West Hollywood. An unidentified white male adult in his 30s allegedly took a BMW 6-series convertible and began driving west toward Santa Monica, said Sgt. Richard Bowman with the Sheriff's Department.
Deputies hung back a couple of blocks so that the driver didn't feel the need to break the speed limit, run red lights or otherwise endanger the public, Bowman said.
A law enforcement helicopter kept an eye on the man's progress from above, alerting deputies to his position.
It also awakened some residents, who voiced their frustrations later that morning in e-mails and phone calls to the Daily Press.
The car came to a stop on Stanford Street in Santa Monica, and the driver refused to leave the vehicle, at which point the deputies used tear gas in an attempt to force him out into the open, at which point he was safely taken into custody at approximately 3 a.m.
There is a possibility that he was under the influence, Bowman said.
As of Thursday afternoon, the man had refused to identify himself to investigators, and was insisting on getting an attorney.
Santa Monica Police Department officers assisted in the operation.
ashley@www.smdp.com
