Carjacker crashes near Beverly Hills tree-lighting event, injuring 4, police say

A man was arrested in Beverly Hills on Thursday evening on suspicion of stealing a car and injuring four bystanders in a hit-and-run near a holiday tree-lighting event, authorities said.

The incident took place shortly after 7 p.m. near Wilshire Boulevard and Camden Drive, a block away from where hundreds of people had gathered to celebrate the city’s annual Rodeo Drive Holiday Lighting Celebration, according to the Beverly Hills Police Department.

“A black car came speeding really, really fast ... screeching and then lost control, swerved over and slammed into a bunch of people,” one witness told KTLA.

Officers arrested James Portul, 22, of Pennsylvania in the incident, which injured two men, one woman and a boy, according to the Police Department. All four victims were taken to local hospitals; their conditions were unknown, according to police.

The Police Department received a call about a carjacking in the 400 block of North Bedford Drive at 7:06 p.m. The victim said a man had stolen her BMW X3 and then fled the area, police said.

Shortly thereafter, the department received a call regarding a nearby vehicle collision. Officers believe the carjacking suspect lost control of the car, crashed it and ran off.

Officers assigned to the holiday lighting event helped track down and arrest the suspect in the 200 block of South Beverly Drive, according to police.