Oakland police arrested three including one for carjacking two vehicles late last month as officers deal with a slight increase in carjackings this year, police said Friday.
Officers located one of the carjacked vehicles Wednesday traveling in the 2500 block of Highland Avenue. Officers followed the vehicle with the help of the department's helicopter to the 3300 block of Maybelle Way, a dead-end street.
Police tried to stop the driver, but he put the vehicle in reverse, hitting a patrol vehicle and then a parked vehicle, according to police. The driver got out and ran until officers located him nearly an hour later hiding in a yard, police said.
Two more people were inside the vehicle the driver fled from and the pair was arrested, according to police. All three of the suspects were arrested without any trouble, police said.
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Police allege the driver participated in two carjackings. One last Sunday is what prompted police to try to stop him Wednesday.
In that carjacking, police allege three people confronted the victim as she was getting out of the vehicle, grabbed her purse and dragged her on the ground before leaving in her vehicle.
Officers also allege that the driver carjacked a vehicle last Saturday. Police said before the driver was apprehended on Wednesday, he dropped a set of keys, which officers located.
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Officers activated the key fob's panic alarm and located another vehicle that was reported carjacked Saturday in the 1600 block of Foothill Boulevard, according to police. A suspect in that carjacking was carrying a rifle, police said.
The suspect who drove at least one of the carjacked vehicles could also be charged with possessing a stolen vehicle, according to police. The other two suspects were each arrested for carjacking, police said. One was wanted for burglary, according to police.
Officers have investigated 500 carjackings this year, up 1 percent from the same period last year, police said.
