Carjacking suspect arrested after police pursuit

A man wanted in an armed carjacking in El Monte led officers on a nearly two-hour chase Thursday over freeways and surface streets before surrendering in the Whittier area, police said.

Steven Amaya, 28, of Pasadena was booked on suspicion of carjacking, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and evading, police said.

The pursuit began about 2:50 a.m. near Penn Mar Avenue and Wanda Street, when officers saw a car matching the description of the carjacked vehicle, El Monte police said.

``The uniformed officers, who were on foot, attempted to stop the vehicle,'' police said. ``However, the driver attempted to run over one of the officers as he fled in the vehicle. This officer did not sustain any injuries. The officers returned to their marked police units and attempted to stop the wanted vehicle as it sped away.''

The chase led onto various freeways, including the southbound San Gabriel River (605) Freeway, where the suspect at one point headed north in the southbound lanes, said El Monte police Lt. Ernie Cramer.

California Highway Patrol officers took over the pursuit, aided by a helicopter crew, and the car made its way onto the Foothill (210) Freeway and eventually went onto the southbound 605 Freeway again. The Honda Civic finally
stopped at Colima Road and Mar Vista Street, where Amaya was taken into custody after a brief standoff.

No injuries were reported in the original carjacking, Cramer said.

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