A violent carjacking and police chase in the East Bay ended without injuries on Wednesday, thanks to a malfunctioning pistol and an observant police detective.
The suspect crashed a Subaru which might be stolen and carjacked a red Ford F350 pickup that was parked nearby, police said.
"The owner of the utility truck tried to resist it and protect his vehicle," said San Leandro police spokesman Lt. Bob McManus. "The gunman pulled the trigger several times on the semiautomatic pistol that he had. And for some lucky reason, the gun did not fire."
The gunman sped off, left the pickup about a mile away, and stole a Honda sedan, McManus said.
Meanwhile, a friend of the truck owner spotted the pickup nearby. A description of the gunman went out on the police radio. And a plainclothes detective spotted someone matching that description -- especially the tattoos on his chest and shoulders -- behind the wheel of a Honda.
The car was registered to someone living in the neighborhood. So the detective gave chase, slowly at first, in his unmarked police car.
The suspect soon realized that he was being followed and tried to lose the officer by driving in circles in a residential neighborhood off the 164th Ave. exit. Then he sped onto 580 South, exited at Foothill Blvd., and headed east on Castro Valley Blvd.
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At one point the suspect hopped a curb to get around traffic, McManus said. The resulting damage to the car slowed him down.
He then made a daring U-turn and drove the wrong way down Redwood Blvd. Then he jumped out of the car with a gun in his hand.
Police surrounded and arrested Ty Kender, 25, of Hayward. Police say he's a parolee with multiple warrants out for his arrest.
