FOX 11’s Susan Hirasuna gets her stolen Tesla back after car dies mid-police chase
LOS ANGELES - FOX 11 anchor and reporter Susan Hirasuna ended up being the victim of a crime after she parked her car near the United Theater on Broadway in downtown Los Angeles for a concert Thursday night.
After the concert, Hirasuna discovered her Tesla had been stolen. She and her friend then drove to the LAPD administrative building on Main St. But before she could even file a report, patrol officers with the Los Angeles Police Department attempted to stop the vehicle for reckless driving.
"By that time he realizes I can hear the radio chatter and they're saying things like ‘the car is on Wall St’. And I realized that's matching up to the location on the app. They started following that car because someone else reported a driver driving recklessly," Hirasuna said.
Using her Tesla app, she could see where the suspect was going and that her car battery was down to 15 miles of range.
At one point during the pursuit, officers considered a PIT maneuver, but instead, they just followed the car until it ran out of battery power in East Hollywood.
The suspect was later arrested and thankfully, Hirasuna is doing OK.
She said at least three people were in the car.
When the LAPD was in the process of releasing the car back to her, investigators discovered the suspect in the car may have been connected to an assault on Skid Row on Wall and East 5th Street, in which a person was struck with an ax.
Officers also discovered blood on the inside of the passenger door, and the vehicle was impounded for prints. Investigators continue to gather other evidence in the case.
Authorities said the victim in that incident was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. However, the suspect in the ax attack has not been taken into custody, LAPD officials said.
"This certainly changes my perspective on how to park my car. I'm going to put it in valet mode, which wouldn't give them access to the trunk. Everything in my car is gone. And it means they couldn't drive that fast."
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Hirasuna has anchored the weekend news and reported for FOX 11 for more than two decades. She's a proud hometown girl who was born in Encino, raised in Simi Valley, and graduated from the University of Southern California.