This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A car thief slipped Unified Police pursuit the first time around, but the high-speed rematch ended with the suspect crashing into an ill-fated Midvale home early Thursday morning.
UPD Lt. Lex Bell said that while the male driver initially managed to elude officers, two adult passengers — a 30-year-old male and a 29-year-old female — did not, and were arrested at the scene, 6989 S. 300 East, about 3:30 a.m.
The stolen, 1997 model Toyota Camry had been spotted about 3:05 a.m. at 7800 S. Redwood Road. A UPD officer tried to pull it over, but the suspect sped onto Interstate 215 and the pursuit was ended due to dangers posed by construction work on the freeway.
However, a Metro Gang Unit detective in an unmarked truck saw the suspect vehicle on State Street near 7000 South. He followed, lost contact and then sighted the Camry at the crash scene.
The man and woman were quickly arrested, but the 33-year-old driver ran through the home, kicked out a side door and then escaped, despite a subsequent search of the neighborhood by police and dogs. However, he, too, was finally spotted a few hours later hiding atop a shed, and officers on the scene arrested him when he jumped to the ground and attempted to run.
The suspect — wanted on an arrest warrant for violating his parole on an earlier robbery conviction — was taken to the hospital to be checked, then turned over to Adult Probation and Parole for return to prison.
The crash — the third in two years for the house, located just off an intersection on a corner lot — caused extensive damage. Police said the car not only pulverized a boulder that had been placed on the yard as a traffic barrier, but burst through the brick and wood wall and into the home. A man and woman living in the home were unhurt.
Homeowner Steve Carpenter told KUTV News that he is at a loss over what to do next to safeguard the property. During the Memorial Day 2014 weekend, a truck had plowed into the home, and a short time later, not long after repairs had been made, a motorcyclist collided with the house.
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