Police chase catalytic converter thieves: 1 arrested, 1 escapes
The pair smashed the windows of a neighbor's car and threw items at police during the chase, BPD said.
A man brandished a gun and may have fired it during a catalytic converter theft attempt Friday morning leading to a police chase through the Berkeley Hills, authorities report.
During the pursuit, the men threw items at a Berkeley police officer and damaged his windshield, BPD said. The officer was not injured.
In the end, one man was arrested and one escaped. The investigation is ongoing.
The incident began just before 6:30 a.m. Friday when Berkeley police got reports of a catalytic converter theft attempt in the 1600 block of Euclid Avenue, several blocks north of the UC Berkeley campus near Cedar Street.
Men smashed the windows of a neighbor's car during a catalytic converter theft attempt in Berkeley on Friday, July 19, 2024. Ariel Nava Photo
In addition to brandishing a gun and possibly firing it when they were interrupted, police said the men smashed the windows of a neighbor's car when the neighbor activated the car's alarm to get the men to leave.
Responding officers spotted the men fleeing the scene in a stolen vehicle, BPD said. They began to chase the car through the northeast Berkeley Hills.
The men jumped out of the stolen car and abandoned it on Wildcat Canyon Road near Woodhaven Road, police said, and then fled into Tilden Regional Park on foot.
A BPD officer found one of the men hiding and arrested him without incident, police said.
He was identified as Ixil George Velasquez, 30, of Oakland.
During the search, Berkeley police called in drones and K-9s from other law enforcement agencies but, as of publication time, they had not located the second man.
BPD said they found "evidence of the crimes" in the stolen vehicle the men had ditched near Tilden.
"This is an ongoing investigation," BPD said in a prepared statement Friday afternoon. "No further details are being provided at this time."
Emilie Raguso
Catalytic converter thefts have spiked in Berkeley in recent months.
On Thursday, police chased an armed catalytic converter theft crew through South Berkeley but lost the culprits in North Oakland.
Police are looking into whether the incidents from Thursday and Friday may be related.
