A 64-year-old man was killed when a driver fleeing police in Westminster ran a red light and crashed into another vehicle Friday morning.
The crash occurred around 10 a.m. near the intersection of Newland Street and Westminster Avenue when Orange County Sheriff’s Department deputies tried to pull over a black Camaro for fraudulent tags, authorities said.
The suspect did not stop and then ran a red light at Trask Avenue in Garden Grove, crashing into a BMW that was heading east.
The driver of the BMW, a 64-year-old man, was thrown from the car and ended up under a stairwell at the apartment complex, authorities said. He died at the scene.
A 54-year-old male passenger was transported to a hospital where he was listed in critical but stable condition.
The suspect ran away from the scene. Deputies, along with officers from the Garden Grove and Westminster police departments, searched the area and the driver was eventually found and taken into custody around 2 p.m.
His identity was not immediately released.
Aerial video from Sky5 showed both vehicles with major damage. One of the vehicles ended up on the lawn of an apartment complex at the intersection.
Nearby Iva Meairs Elementary School was in session at the time of the crash and went on lockdown from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.