Murrieta Police Chase Leads To Rollover Crash, Officer Injured

See Oct. 2 Update To This Story: Passenger In Murrieta Police Chase, Crash Dies From Injuries

MURRIETA, CA — An investigation was underway into an early morning police chase in Murrieta that led to a multi-vehicle crash, which injured a police officer, four other people, and caused road closures, the Murrieta Police Department confirmed.

Just after 3 a.m. Thursday, a Murrieta police officer attempted to pull over a BMW driver near Jefferson Avenue and Murrieta Hot Springs for a vehicle code violation, but the motorist sped away northbound on Jefferson toward the Los Alamos Road intersection, according to Lt. Ron Driscoll of the Murrieta Police Department.

Instead of stopping for the traffic light, the suspect driver continued through the intersection and plowed into another motorist driving a red Honda.

The crash impact sent the BMW into southbound Jefferson Avenue traffic, where it collided with another Murrieta Police Department vehicle driven by an officer who was responding to the chase. The patrol vehicle rolled over, and the officer inside had to be extricated from the wreckage and airlifted to a hospital for treatment of major injuries that were not considered life-threatening, Driscoll said.

Two people inside the BMW sustained major injuries. Two people in the Honda suffered minor to moderate injuries. All four were hospitalized. No further information about their injuries or identities was released.

Investigators from the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office and the California Highway Patrol’s Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team were called to the crash site and have assumed the investigation.

The Murrieta Police Department’s Traffic Bureau and Detective Bureau was also assisting with the investigation.

Driscoll said it was too early in the investigation to say whether charges would be filed.

Jefferson Avenue was closed in both directions between Juniper Street and Murrieta Hot Springs Road. Los Alamos Road was also shuttered in both directions from Adams to Madison avenues. According to Driscoll, the roadways were cleared by 3 p.m.