This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A man driving a U-Haul box truck packed with stolen tires, wheel rims and other items eluded police in Murray and West Valley City before tire spikes brought the chase to an end early Thursday morning.
Murray police had tried to pull the truck over about 4 a.m., but when the suspect accelerated his rig to 60 mph through residential areas they suspended pursuit.
The truck was next spotted by a West Valley City officer moments later near 4800 W. 4100 South. He, too, gave chase and had to end the pursuit over public safety concerns, WVCPD Lt. Dalin Taylor said.
However, the male suspect soon drove past two more WVCPD officers and the chase resumed. Officers deployed spikes which took out two of the truck's tires, but the suspect continued to flee, eventually driving into a cul-de-sac near 6000 W. 3100 South.
"At first it looked like he was going to get out and give up, but instead he threw it in reverse and hit two of our patrol cars coming out of the cul-de-sac," Taylor said.
Moments later, police again deployed spike strips, this time taking out the remaining two tires on the truck. The suspect drove about 300 more yards before finally stopping, exiting the truck and surrendering without further incident.
Neither the suspect nor officers were injured.
A search of the truck — also possibly stolen — turned up the loot, believed taken from area auto parts and trucking shops. Owners of those businesses were contacted to identify and retrieve their goods.
The 50-year-old suspect was booked into the Salt Lake County jail on suspicion of felony evading, possession of stolen property and aggravated assault on police.
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