Honda

Stolen Honda Drives Wrong Way From Concord to Berkeley, Crashes Into SUV

A stolen Honda driving the wrong way from Concord to Berkeley sparked a helicopter chase, a crash with an SUV and a regional search of the primary suspect who started the chain of events, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP Officer Sean Wilkenfeld said that the CHP in Contra Costa got a call about 11:30 p.m. Sunday that a Honda Accord stolen from Martinez was driving the wrong way on Highway 4 near Port Chicago Highway in Concord, through city streets, and then onto Interstate Highway 80 in Berkeley.

In Berkeley, Wilkenfeld said the driver got off at University Avenue, taking city streets, “continually driving in the wrong direction.”

Somewhere near Oxford Street and University, the Honda driver crashed into a GMC Envoy on Hearst near California Street, causing that driver to suffer minor injuries and the silver vehicle to flip on its roof.

Witness Eric Layoighya saw the car "doing 70" around a curb on residential streets.

Wilkenfeld said that the Honda driver took off and authorities are looking for him, though they suspect they know who he is: A 20-something man who lives in East Contra Costa. Much of the chase was followed by a CHP helicopter following above.

During the chase, the CHP’s Golden Gate Communication Center received a 911 call from a man identifying himself as the driver of the Honda being followed by the CHP helicopter. That man told the CHP to stop following him. Wilkenfeld said that officers are looking into the authenticity of the call.

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