SACRAMENTO, CA (PSN) — A reckless driving pursuit involving a U-Haul truck early Wednesday morning ended with a crash, a lengthy perimeter search and the eventual arrest of a suspect found hiding inside an occupied home in South Sacramento.
According to observations by PSN crews on scene and police radio traffic, the incident began at about 2:45 a.m. Wednesday, May 13, when officers attempted to stop a reckless driver in the area of 24th Street and 68th Avenue, near the Executive Airport.
The driver fled from officers in a U-Haul truck, leading police through the South Sacramento area before crashing near 24th Street and 51st Avenue. The suspect reportedly attempted to turn into a residential neighborhood when the U-Haul collided with a Chevrolet Suburban that was attempting to exit the neighborhood. The impact pushed both vehicles onto the front lawn of a residence and knocked down a street sign.
The suspect then fled on foot, jumping fences and running through residential backyards as officers pursued him. Officers initially lost sight of the suspect, prompting a rapid perimeter response. PSN observed officers quickly locking down the surrounding neighborhood while additional resources arrived to assist in the search.
Radio traffic indicated officers were significantly limited by the lack of aerial support assets during the search. Sacramento Police Department Air One, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office helicopter and CHP fixed-wing aircraft were reportedly unavailable at the time.
In addition, officers were unable to deploy drones equipped with FLIR thermal imaging due to flight restrictions associated with the nearby Executive Airport airspace.
As a result, officers relied heavily on perimeter containment, canine resources and coordinated ground searches.
After approximately 90 minutes, officers spotted the suspect climbing over a fence into another backyard, tightening the perimeter even further. At one point, officers observed the suspect appear briefly in the front yard of a home near 24th Street before retreating back behind a wrought-iron fence and disappearing into the rear of the property.
According to reports, the suspect eventually entered the garage area of an occupied residence. During the continued search, one officer was bitten by a police canine and suffered what was described over the radio as a significant bite injury to the right arm. The officer was transported to an area hospital for treatment.
Officers later utilized a small microdrone inside the residence to assist with clearing portions of the home. After making contact with the homeowner and obtaining consent to continue the search, officers located the suspect inside the residence and safely took him into custody.
Sacramento Police Department spokesperson Officer Anthony Gamble later confirmed that 20-year-old Jesus Roberto Aguilar was arrested and booked on multiple evading and resisting charges, as well as a felony no-bail warrant.
Police stated the suspect was not injured during the arrest.