A suspect is in custody Thursday morning following an hourslong pursuit and standoff that involved a stolen big rig and prompted a closure on the 55 Freeway in Santa Ana.
The 12-hour-long incident began about 8:15 p.m. Wednesday when California Highway Patrol officials say a truck was stolen from a food service lot in East Los Angeles.
The vehicle was pursued by CHP patrol vehicles and a helicopter as it traveled on freeways through Los Angeles, Ventura and eventually Orange counties.
Authorities tried to stop the big rig with multiple spike strip deployments, which were successful in blowing tires on the truck and resulted in sparks coming from under the vehicle as the driver kept going.
Sky5 was also following the chase but had to leave about 10:30 p.m. due to weather conditions.
The big rig eventually came to a stop on the southbound 55 Freeway near Dyer Road in Orange County during the early morning hours Thursday.
The freeway was closed as authorities waited for the driver to exit the truck.
A SWAT team was eventually called in to help with the situation.
Officials say the driver tried several times to get the truck to move but was unsuccessful and finally exited the vehicle and was taken into custody around 8:30 a.m.
In an arrest report, CHP identified the suspect as 22-year-old Bryan Santana. An Orange County booking record indicated he was in receiving in the late afternoon hours.
No further details were immediately released about the arrest or any potential charges.
