(KGTV) - A Vista man stole a California Highway Patrol vehicle in Riverside County, prompting a chase that entered north San Diego County before ending in Orange County, officers said.
A CHP officer tried to pull over 20-year-old Adolfo Moreno Jr. on Interstate 15 in Temecula for going 120 miles an hour and riding without a helmet shortly before 9:30 a.m.
Moreno crashed his motorcycle but managed to get behind the wheel of a CHP patrol car and drove away, officers said. A short time later, Moreno hit a curb, disabling the CHP vehicle.
Officers said Moreno then went to the parking lot of a Temecula movie theatre and assaulted a woman in a Lexus sedan, pulling her by the hair. She escaped, and the driver began heading south on I-15 in the stolen vehicle.
The Lexus led officers on a high-speed pursuit south on I-15 and then onto westbound state Route 78.
After getting onto southbound I-5, Moreno caused a four-car crash on Manchester Avenue in Encinitas, said the CHP.
Moreno abandoned the Lexus and stole a Toyota Prius with the keys inside and no driver at the wheel, and proceeded north on I-5, according to officers.
The driver eventually exited in San Juan Capistrano, stopped in a residential area on Avenida La Mancha, and surrendered without incident.
