3 Teens Held After 2 Crashes End Chase

Three Oxnard residents were arrested early Monday after authorities said they led Ventura County sheriff’s deputies on a high-speed chase in Oxnard and later crashed the stolen car they were driving into a brick wall.

Clint Willis and Jose Ambriz, both 18, were booked into Ventura County Jail on suspicion of stealing a vehicle and evading police officers. They are both being held in lieu of $10,000 bail. A 15-year-old boy was taken to juvenile hall.

The Sheriff’s Department said the pursuit began when deputies noticed two cars driving erratically on Pleasant Valley Road near Rice Avenue shortly after 1:30 a.m. Authorities said it appeared the cars were playing “tag,” and deputies attempted to stop the vehicles as they traveled east.

When the deputies flashed their lights, the two cars sped away toward south Oxnard, splitting up as they neared town, authorities said.

During the pursuit that lasted about eight minutes, one car crashed into a parked van at Cloyne Street and Arcturus Avenue, but the three people in that car escaped, authorities said. Deputies arrested three of the four suspects in the other car when the vehicle smashed into a brick wall at C and Spruce streets, authorities said.

Deputies said the suspects were driving stolen cars that had not yet been reported. No one was injured in the accidents, authorities said.