A deadly head-on collision Saturday morning in downtown Sacramento killed two people who were in what Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies say was a stolen car.
According to a California Highway Patrol report, a Sacramento County Sheriff's Department patrol attempted to pull over a Toyota Sienna just before 7:30 a.m. on El Camino Avenue near Business 80, since a license plate check revealed the plate was reported lost or stolen.
CHP officer Michael Bradley says the driver of the Toyota did not stop despite emergency lights and siren, so a chase started that led into the downtown Sacramento area. The pursuit continued until the Toyota entered J Street and was heading westbound on the one-way, eastbound portion of the street. Due to safety concerns of the public and the Deputies the Sheriff's Department ended the chase at that point, according to Bradley.
Deputies and officers say the Toyota eventually entered southbound I-5 J Street offramp, but the car headed north in the southbound lanes. Within moments the Toyota collided with a southbound Isuzu Box Van on I-5. The collision resulted in the driver of the Toyota being flung from the car and onto the freeway. The driver and passenger of the Toyota both suffered fatal injuries at the scene. The driver of the Isuzu suffered major injuries to his lower body and was taken to a local hospital.
Bradley says investigators do not know at this time if alcohol or drugs were a factor in this collision.
The CHP is the primary investigating agency for the collision.