August 15, 2022 - Shortly after 9:30 a.m. on Monday, August 15, 2022, a Fresno County Sheriff’s deputy was patrolling the Riverdale area when he saw a large cloud of dust. As he got closer to the scene, a resident told the deputy a minivan just struck an advertisement sign and drove a way. The deputy caught up to the vehicle and tried to make a traffic stop, but the driver continued to speed away. The driver, later determined to be a 12-year-old boy from Hanford, accelerated to speeds over 70 mph, ran stop signs, and drove on the opposite side of the road at times.

Deputies made several attempts to disable the minivan by setting up spike strips, but the boy was able to avoid them. Just before 10:30 a.m., as a sergeant was putting a spike strip in place, the boy swerved at him, nearly hitting him. As the boy turned away from the sergeant, back toward the middle of the road, he ran over the spike strip. His minivan suffered damage to a tire, causing him to come to a stop a mile away near Santa Fe County Road and American Ave., between Mendota and Tranquility.

Deputies contacted the driver and arrested him. He has been booked into Juvenile Hall on charges of auto theft, evading police and assault with a deadly weapon. Deputies later learned the boy took his family’s vehicle and intended to drive from Hanford to Sacramento, where he used to live. No injuries occurred.

Source & photos: Fresno County Sheriff's Office