WATSONVILLE—Two people, including a 17-year-old girl, are behind bars after plotting an armed carjacking and leading multiple law enforcement agencies on car chases.
City of Watsonville spokesperson Michelle Pulido said the crime spree came to an end when the teen girl crashed a stolen black Infiniti G35 into a parked car on the 200 block of Arthur Road Tuesday afternoon.
The night before, Pulido said, the girl convinced the 19-year-old man who owns the black Infiniti to give her a ride and directed him to a parking lot on Penny Lane. That’s when two men pulled a knife on the owner of the Infiniti and began beating him and attempting to stab him. The two men and the girl then stole his car and left the scene, Pulido said.
Despite being seriously injured, the victim managed to run to a nearby business for help. Watsonville police initiated Project ROPE (Roadblock Observations Plan of Enforcement), which alerted all county law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for the stolen Infiniti.
A short while later Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Deputies attempted to stop the car on Highway 1 in Soquel, but the suspects sped off and led them on a high-speed chase into Santa Clara County. Officers from the California Highway Patrol took over the chase but lost sight of the Infiniti near Palo Alto.
On Tuesday afternoon, a detective assigned to the Monterey County Multi-Agency Detail for Combating Auto Theft (MADCAT) was driving through Watsonville when he spotted the stolen Infiniti.
WPD officers attempted to stop the car on the 1400 block of Freedom Boulevard, but the driver, the teen girl, led them on another chase. Less than a minute later, she crashed the Infiniti on Arthur Road.
The driver and her passenger, 18-year-old Bryan Alfaro, of Soledad, were arrested. Both are facing several felony charges, including carjacking and assault with a deadly weapon. The teen girl did not have a license and was charged with felony evading.
Detectives are currently working to identify the last suspect involved in the case.
