Everyone loves car chases. Especially those where an escape seems ridiculously possible. Somehow.
Car enthusiasts love car chases. Memphis Raines running from the police in LA in a Shelby GT500. Baddies fleeing from Steve McQueen in his Ford Mustang GT 390. It’s a natural affinity. However, in real life, chases seldom end with a picture-picture escape. Such was the case with an LA car chase suspect who thought he could hide from police by hiding behind a parked car.
After crashing a stolen car, an LA car chase suspect hid beside a parked car to elude police– and it worked right up until it didn’t
Just imagine the scores of onlookers glued to their mobile devices and television screens, hollering impotently as multiple Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers passed a car chase suspect as he hid. Most frustratingly, it wasn’t some inspired escape plan worthy of an “Oceans” franchise film. No, the suspect picked a blue Honda sedan and, well, laid down beside it. You can’t make this up.
When I say “suspect,” there’s no confusion that the car thief was fleeing pursuing police officers. In a stolen SUV, the suspect attempted to outrun the cops. However, he crashed into several unsuspecting motorists, damaging his ill-gotten ride beyond repair in the process. After the last of the substantial impacts, he disembarked the silver SUV and fled on foot.
That’s right; he took a page from the “Grand Theft Auto V” book, likely thinking that out-of-sight does mean out-of-mind. Not quite. However, and frustratingly so, the suspect took a left into an alley and crouched behind a parked Honda sedan. As police officers closed in, the man flattened out into a prone position, hoping to out-hide his pursuers. Still, it seemed to work for a moment. Not one, not two, but six LAPD officers ran right past the crouching fugitive, hidden runaway.
Better yet, the would-be escapee and his white shirt were in plain view of a Fox News helicopter as the suspect attempted to shake the officers. FOX 11’s Stu Mundel yelled “Come on guys! He’s right there!” as he and the pilot covered the event. Fortunately for LA’s Finest, a backtrack revealed the suspect’s hiding spot.
In all seriousness, LAPD policy isn’t quite the same as the non-player characters (NPCs) in Grand Theft Auto V. Even without the news chopper orbiting above, additional police units would have almost certainly discovered the fugitive– despite his spectacular hide-and-seek skills.