Crime & Safety

Contra Costa Hostage Crisis Ends With Suspect's Surrender

The man held two hostages for hours at an Antioch gas station after leading law enforcement on wild chase throughout the county.

Susan C. Schena's profile picture
Susan C. Schena, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge

A man who surrendered after an hours-long standoff at a gas station in Antioch had led police on a wild pursuit through several Contra Costa County cities this morning, the Antioch police chief said.

The suspect took the owner of the Arco at 2610 Contra Loma Blvd. and an employee hostage when he took shelter there after a California Highway Patrol officer fired a single shot in his direction, Antioch police Chief Allan Cantando said.

No one was hit by gunfire and the hostages were uninjured in the standoff.

Find out what's happening in Walnut Creekwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The 35-year-old man, a resident of the Newark area, crashed a vehicle stolen out of Walnut Creek near the corner of West 10th Street and Auto Center Drive in Antioch at about 11:10 a.m., Cantando said. The driver fled from the crash scene and carjacked another vehicle at a nearby business.

The owner of that car had left his cellphone inside, which allowed police to track it as the suspect drove to Pittsburg, Concord, Brentwood and back to Antioch, according to Cantando.

Find out what's happening in Walnut Creekwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

During that time, the suspect realized the cellphone was in the car and discarded it, but by then he was being tracked by a CHP helicopter and had patrol cars in pursuit.

Officers broke off the pursuit at one point when the driver started heading the wrong way on the road, but the CHP helicopter continued tracking the vehicle. Eventually, the officers used spike strips to disable the car, leading to a traffic collision near the L Street off-ramp of state Highway 4, Cantando said.

The suspect ran from the car and under the overpass where he tried to carjack several other motorists.

CHP officers arrived and the suspect fled, pointing his gun at the officers. One of the CHP officers fired a single shot in his direction. The suspect ran into the nearby Arco station, where he took the two hostages and remained for hours before finally surrendering, Cantando said.

Investigators are still evaluating the multiple crime scenes involved in the pursuit.

The name of the suspect has not been released, but Cantando said he has an extensive criminal history including arrests for burglary, drugs and vehicle theft. He has no prior arrests in Antioch.

By Bay City News

Photo courtesy Scott Mullin ‏@Mullin_Scott via Twitter

Also on Patch:

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to [email protected].

More from Walnut Creek