Suspects lead police on Bonnie and Clyde-esque car chase in Valley
Jan 10, 2018, 8:21 PM | Updated: Jan 11, 2018, 5:31 pm
PHOENIX — Two suspects went on a Bonnie and Clyde-esque crime spree throughout the Phoenix-area on Wednesday night, allegedly stealing a car before leading police on a city-wide chase and crashing into the desert.
The suspects, later identified as 35-year-old Dustin Perkins and Lovida Flores, were first reported as having stole a vehicle by the Salt River Police Department, according to Nikolas Rasheta with the Mesa Police Department.
Rasheta said a Mesa police officer then found the vehicle near 8th Avenue and Stapley Drive in Mesa and attempted to pull the suspects over, but the car failed to yield and the pair drove away.
At this point, multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Maricopa County and Pinal County sheriff’s offices and the Mesa and Gilbert police departments, joined the efforts.
The suspects led law enforcement officers on a long, Valley-wide chase that involved narrowly dodging other vehicles and, at times, driving on the wrong side of the road.
But they eventually ran out of road — literally.
The car crashed in the desert near Guadalupe and Ironwood. Perkins, who was driving, and Flores, a passenger, got out of the car and started running in different directions — while being chased by multiple helicopters and cop cars.
The suspects eventually made their way back to one another, pulling in close for a long embrace and even exchanging a kiss before laying on their stomachs and surrendering to police.
Perkins was jailed on suspicion of criminal damage, unlawful flight and other offenses. Flores suffered a brain bleed, dislocated jaw and neck pain as a result of the crash and is expected to recover.
The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said they will not be charging Flores with any crime as of now.
Perkins told news crews that the vehicle belongs to his father and that he was trying to return it.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
