4 dead after police pursuit ends in accident; driver suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol

UPLAND, Calif. – Four people were killed in Southern California early Friday when a six-minute police chase ended in a two-vehicle crash, authorities said.

San Bernardino County Sheriff’s officers began pursuing a driver suspected of being intoxicated around 1:45 a.m. Friday after the vehicle refused to stop and yield during a traffic stop. The driver eluded pursuing officers and a sheriff’s helicopter at high speeds for six minutes.

Officers later discovered that the Hyundai had been reported stolen and that a loaded weapon had been found on one of the deceased, the sheriff’s department said in a press release.

According to the sheriff, the vehicle, a 2018 Hyundai, collided with a 2010 Ford Mustang at an intersection in Upland, a city more than 33 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. The Hyundai then struck a pole, broke into three pieces and caught fire.

The five male occupants of the Hyundai were thrown from the vehicle, the sheriff’s department said. Four of them were pronounced dead at the scene, and a 13-year-old boy was taken to the hospital. He is expected to survive.

The occupants of the Mustang, a 35-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman, were taken to hospital as a precaution. The names of the occupants were not released.

Further details were not immediately available.