A 15-year-old boy who led a police chase in an alleged stolen vehicle over the weekend in Hemet is in dire trouble after one of his passengers was killed during the melee.
The chase began when the teen, who was not identified due to his age, was spotted Saturday morning driving a white Toyota sedan believed stolen out of Desert Hot Springs, according to a report from the Hemet Police Department.
Officers pulled the Toyota over in the 2000 block of W. Acacia Avenue around 7:48 a.m. and three people were in the car, according to Hemet police.
But as officers began speaking with the trio, the driver sped off and a police chase began, according to the report.
The teen driver headed north on Gilmore Street, then east on Devonshire Avenue. As he approached Lyon Street, he didn’t slow down for a posted stop sign and instead swerved to miss a vehicle, lost control, and skidded north and east onto the north sidewalk where the car rolled several times, striking a tree before coming to a stop, according to police.
One passenger was ejected from the Toyota while the teen driver and the front passenger remained inside the car. Officers requested medical assistance and immediately began life-saving measures on the ejected passenger, but he died at the scene, police said. His identity has not been released.
The teen driver and front passenger were hospitalized with moderate injuries; both are expected to recover, according to police.
A records check of the driver revealed there was a felony “no bail” warrant for his arrest, police said.
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