Lupita Murillo Reports
Citizens jump to action, catch suspected car thieves

Posted: April 14, 2008 12:20 PM PDT

Citizens jump to action, catch suspected car thieves







News more>>

Support Spring Training in Tucson
Spring training as we know it is threatened. Use this link to learn how to support the national pastime in our own backyard.

The Digital Switch - February 17, 2009

The switch does not mean you need an HDTV! This link can answer all of your DTV questions.

Truck crashes in the desert: 2 killed, 15 flee

TPD employee accused of mishandling cases

Citizens jump to action, catch suspected car thieves

Officers wound armed man

Knock on the door turns deadly

Pima County Health trying to track source of measles

Police searching for child who "may be in danger"

County: Cockroaches found at pizza shop, critical violations at taco shop





A couple of suspected criminals picked a bad day to do their dirty work.

Deputies say they were after two men driving a stolen car through the Friday morning rush. Authorities say the driver of the stolen SUV crashed into three vehicles, a tree, and a carport on the northwest side. They ran from deputies.

The driver was tased; the passenger was brought down by two men who watched the scenario unfold before their eyes.

John MacIntire, a former law enforcement officer, was sitting at the sonic waiting for his coffee when he heard the sirens. "Being noisy I looked up at a red blazer going at an excessive rate of speed. I saw the deputy directly behind him when the car crashed. I told the guy at Sonic, 'I'll be right back.'"

MacIntire was in his car. He cut off the running suspect and grabbed him.

Kenny Eastep also heard the commotion and walked out of his house just in time to help. "We took the one guy to the ground here and the officer had the other guy to the ground right here and we brought him back to him."

Laughing, Eastep recalls, "He kept getting a little mouthy on the ground and we were just, 'Calm down buddy, you're caught.'"

Sheriff's officials say 18 year old Anthony Angulo was driving the stolen blazer and that 26 year old Jose Olivas-Valdez was the passenger who was chased down.

"Why would I do that?," MacIntire says. "Our law enforcement have a hard job to do. I'm ex-law enforcement. My daughter is a sergeant with Denver P.D. They need help. If more citizens get involved you're going to find some of these idiots won't be doing so much of this."

For Eastep, it was personal. His children often walk down that street. "It was a pretty wild experience... Don't happen every morning. I just happened to be here. Hopefully anybody else would have done the same thing."

Anthony Angulo is charged with burglary and fleeing from deputies. His passenger, Jose Olivas-Valdez, is an illegal immigrant and is being held by Border Patrol.

http://www.kvoa.com/Global/story.asp?S= ... v=HMO6HMaW