A violent felon wanted by police in El Cajon was arrested in Redlands following a short pursuit last Wednesday afternoon.
The Redlands Police were alerted when an Automated License Plate Reader hit on a stolen vehicle in the area of Alabama Street and Lugonia Avenue. An officer spotted the vehicle leaving a Denny’s parking lot nearby and attempted to stop the driver. The driver failed to yield and a short pursuit ensued.
Police used a Pursuit Intervention Technique, or PIT maneuver, to force the vehicle to a stop after officers observed the driver brandishing a handgun. Once the vehicle was forced to a stop at Tennessee Street and Pioneer Avenue, the driver attempted to flee on foot but was quickly apprehended. Two passengers in the vehicle were also taken into custody.
The driver, 35-year-old Joseph Manuel Frias, of El Cajon, is wanted by police there for several violent crimes in the El Cajon area.
The vehicle, a 2012 Hyundai, was confirmed as stolen. Police located a 9mm handgun and ammunition in the vehicle.
One passenger, 29-year-old Elisabeth Louise Stane, of Crestline, was arrested on an outstanding warrant. The other passenger, 35-year-old Otilio Salvador Gomez, of Highland, was arrested for a probation violation.
Frias was booked at West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga and is being held without bail on warrants out of San Diego County.
Gomez is being held without bail at Central Detention Center in San Bernardino. Stane was booked on a misdemeanor warrant at Central Detention Center and later released.
Anyone with information regarding a crime or suspicious activity is asked to contact Redlands Police Dispatch at (909) 798-7681 ext. 1. Certain non-emergency crimes may also be reported online using the Redlands Police Department’s CopLogic reporting system at cityofredlands.org/police/