One man died and another was badly injured Sunday night when a police chase ended in a crash of two pickup trucks in Elk Grove.
The dead man – identified by the coroner as Jose Roberto Sanchez, 35, of Sacramento – was the driver of a truck that police said was initially spotted being driven erratically on Highway 99. That prompted a high-speed chase of the Toyota Tundra at speeds up to 90 mph by California Highway Patrol officers.
The chase ended when Sanchez crossed into oncoming traffic on Grant Line Road and slammed into a Ford 250 pickup. The driver of the F250 suffered major injuries.
CHP spokesman Officer Michael Bradley said the pursuit began about 9:10 p.m. Sunday when a paramedic team spotted the Toyota moving erratically southbound on Highway 99 near 47th Avenue. The ambulance crew reported that the truck was weaving and the driver could be drunk, Bradley said.
When the CHP tried to pull over the driver, the Toyota got off Highway 99 at the Sheldon Road exit and went east, blowing through stop signs and stop lights at 70 mph to 80 mph, said Bradley.
The Toyota then traveled southbound on Grant Line Road, continuing to run stop signs and swerving onto the shoulder, now at speeds of up to 90 mph, Bradley said. At Grant Line and Bond roads, the driver allegedly ran a stoplight and crossed over the double yellow line, hitting the Ford pickup nearly head-on at 9:20 p.m.
Sanchez was declared dead at the scene. He was not wearing a seat belt.
The man in the Ford pickup suffered fractures to his leg and arm and possibly other major injuries.
It was not initially clear if Sanchez was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Toxicology tests are pending.
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Call The Bee's Bill Lindelof, (916) 321-1079. Bee staff writer Cathy Locke contributed to this report.
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