Monday, June 15, 2009

Thief leaves trail of destruction after boosting car from airport

KOMO-TV STAFF

A man who investigators say stole a car from a family unloading luggage at Sea-Tac Airport smashed into seven police cars before finally being arrested Saturday evening.

The incident began just before 7 p.m. when the Cadillac Escalade was stolen from the departures drop off area at the airport.

The vehicle had an OnStar system installed, which allowed OnStar operators to track the SUV's location and direct sheriff's deputies to it.

When deputies caught up with the driver, he tried to speed away and hit multiple cars during the pursuit, including seven police cruisers.

King County sheriff spokesman John Urquhart said one officer suffered a minor injury in the chase, which finally came to an end when the thief lost control of the stolen SUV and flipped it on South 188th Street where the road passes under Interstate 5.

The vehicle rolled several times and caught fire, but the driver was not seriously injured.

"He'll be going to jail and then we've got a lot of cleanup to do," Urquhart said.

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