03.07.2021 | 11:15 PM | ORANGE – A suspect who fled from police and later evaded officers by driving wrong-way caused two separate crashes including one that left him trapped in his own vehicle, late Saturday night.
The pursuit began when an officer attempted to stop a male driver in a white 2010 Mazda 6 sedan for a vehicle code violation near the intersection of Santa Ana Boulevard and Grand Avenue around 11:08 PM.
The driver of the Mazda fled from officers prompting a chase that quickly entered the southbound I-5 Freeway near Grand Avenue.
After entering the freeway the suspect made an abrupt U-turn just north of 4th Street and began heading northbound in southbound lanes.
The maneuver caused a silver Chevrolet Silverado pickup to collide with a patrol vehicle as the truck’s driver veered to avoided a collision with the suspect.
Officers called off the pursuit due to the dangerous driving behavior but the suspect continued traveling wrong-way and transitioned onto the southbound SR-57 Freeway.
Eventually the suspect’s streak of luck ended when he collided with two others vehicles on the southbound SR-57 Freeway near Orangewood Avenue around 11:15 PM and became trapped in his vehicle.
Firefighter paramedics responded to the scene and used the Jaws of Life to cut the suspect from his vehicle before transporting him to an area hospital with major injuries.
Three other individuals from two other cars were also transported from the scene by paramedics but their conditions were not immediately known.
Neither the officer or the occupants of the pickup truck were injured in the initial crash on the southbound I-5 at 4th Street.
The driver of the suspect vehicle was later identified as 26-year-old Daniel Diaz. According to court records Diaz has numerous outstanding warrants for driving without a license, petty theft, and drug charges in Orange County.
