Hermosa Beach Police last Thursday pursued a man driving a stolen van who crashed the car in a neighborhood located in the northern section of town and evaded officers. The man still remains at large.

Authorities said the burglar stole a car from the 100 block of 19th Street and stole an electric scooter worth $500 from Roller Skates of America at 1312 Hermosa Ave.

The brief car chase began soon after witnesses operating a business across the street from the crime saw an unidentified person break a window at the downtown business, steal the scooter and jump into a 1987 Toyota minivan. The witness called police at 5:15 a.m.

“It was the only minivan in the area driven at a high rate of speed by a person who matched the description of the suspect,” said Press Information Officer Paul Wolcott.

The suspect slammed on the brakes at 33rd Street and Highland Avenue, and attempted to make a right turn onto 33rd Street. The force of such erratic driving caused the minivan to flip on its side and slide into the driveway of the home located on the southwest corner of the street.

“The suspect then ran southeast on 33rd Street and cut through some houses,” said Wolcott. “The housing is very dense in this area.”

The police officer slightly hit the minivan with his car from behind as the suspect jumped out of the car while it was still moving.

“We know the patrol car just brushed the minivan because the air bags in the patrol car were never activated which requires at least a 24 mph impact,” said Wolcott. “What caused the minivan to flip on its side was a combination of rapid deceleration and trying to make a right turn.”

Police from both Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach assisted local officers in surrounding the area as Hawthorne Police officers and two police dogs helped in the search for the suspect.

“We set up a perimeter concentrating on a specific area of six blocks where we conducted a house-to-house search,” said Wolcott. “Two canines searched the areas for several hours.”

Officers scoured the neighborhood until about 10 a.m. but could not find the suspect. Police eventually received a report about the stolen minivan.

Officers recovered an electric scooter inside the van as the burglar attempted to steal two $500 scooters from the business to no avail. The smashed business window is valued at about $4,000.

“The investigation is ongoing as we were able to locate some prints in the car and some blood,” added Wolcott. “Detectives are waiting for the forensic evidence to come back from the lab.”