Sacramento negotiators convince armed man to surrender after Carmichael chase and standoff
Sacramento County sheriff’s officials convinced a man to surrender peacefully after a car chase that ended in a crash in Carmichael and led to more than four hours of negotiations.
Alejandro Garcia got out of the car with his hands up Monday night, leaving behind guns that were found inside the car, said Sgt. Rodney Grassmann, a Sheriff’s Office spokesman. Garcia remained in custody Tuesday afternoon at Sacramento County Main Jail, where he was being held without bail.
“The negotiators did great work and de-escalated the incident,” Grassmann told The Sacramento Bee. “We knew he had guns and that’s why we were chasing him.”
Garcia, 37, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, gross negligent discharge of a firearm, corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant, domestic violence, evading police in a reckless manner, resisting arrest, knowing a concealed gun was reported stolen and carrying a loaded gun registered to someone else, according to jail records.
About 1 p.m. Monday, a woman called authorities to report her her ex-boyfriend assaulted her, according to a Sheriff’s Office news release. The suspect left before deputies arrived.
Sheriff’s officials said the same woman called authorities again shortly after 9 p.m. Monday to report her ex-boyfriend returned to her home with a gun. The Sheriff’s Office received multiple calls Monday night reporting the dispute in the North Highlands area, Grassmann said.
The man left again before deputies arrived, but a sheriff’s helicopter spotted the suspect’s car and directed patrol deputies to the area.
Grasmmann said deputies found the suspect, later identified as Garcia, about 9:25 p.m. in North Highlands, which led to the pursuit.
Deputies tried to pull over the car, but the driver failed to stop and sped away, initiating a “lengthy pursuit” through surface streets and reaching speeds of up to 90 mph, according to the sheriff’s news release.
About 9:45 p.m., deputies found the suspect’s car had become disable, high-centered in the median on Fair Oaks Boulevard near Grant Avenue in Carmichael, Grassmann said. Garcia refused to get out of the car.
The sheriff’s SWAT team surrounded the car with armored trucks, in case the suspect got out of the car and “started shooting,” Grassmann said. Deputies also evacuated a nearby apartment complex as a precaution.
Sheriff’s negotiators continued to talk to Garcia until about 2:15 a.m., when they convinced him to get out of the car without any guns and surrender, Grassmann said. Garcia was taken into custody without any further incident and the guns were recovered.
The California Highway Patrol, along with the Sacramento, Elk Grove and Folsom police departments, assisted the Sheriff’s Office, according to the news release.
This story was originally published May 18, 2021 at 12:48 PM.
