91 Freeway Anaheim: Suspect dead after hours long standoff shuts down freeway
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ANAHEIM, Calif. — A suspect is dead after a standoff on the 91 Freeway in Anaheim Hills closed traffic for hours Friday morning.
Corona Police initiated a pursuit around 8 a.m. of an armed driver who was wanted for stalking and making criminal threats. The chase ended before 9:30 a.m. on the westbound lanes of the 91 near Lakeview.
The California Highway Patrol closed both sides of the freeway, causing major traffic that was backed up for several miles.
Westbound traffic was being diverted off Lakeview and eastbound traffic was being rerouted to the southbound 55 Freeway. Images from SkyFOX showed people exiting their cars and walking on both sides of the freeway, as on-lookers gazed at the suspect's car, which was surrounded by SWAT and nearly a dozen police cars.
SkyFOX also caught some drivers making U-turns on the freeway, trying to exit on Imperial.
Throughout the standoff, the suspect's blue vehicle was boxed in by SWAT vehicles. Officials said the driver was threatening to harm himself and was seen waving a handgun.
Images shared with FOX 11 show the suspect pointing a gun at his head.
Andrew Nava and Taylor Buzzinna were driving together on the opposite side of Freeway 91 and recorded video of police aiming firearms towards the suspect.
"My arms went numb," said Nava. "I was in disbelief the next 10–15 minutes when I went home. I couldn’t believe what I just witnessed."
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Around noon, police said the suspect stopped moving. Corona Police said that when officers approached the car, they found the suspect had a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities said they didn’t use force against the suspect.
The suspect was identified as Efrain Quezada, 40, of La Puente.
"It’s just so sad to think there are so many people out there that are having the worst day of their life right now," said Buzzinna. "They could just use some help, a friend, or something."
Both directions of Freeway 91 were closed for hours. Traffic in the surrounding area was also a mess. Eastbound traffic started flowing again around 12:30 p.m. Around 3:45 p.m. the other side of the freeway re-opened.
"Definitely going to be a rough situation for people on the freeway," said Buzzinna. "This Memorial Day Friday."
"I’m glad no one else was injured," said Nava.
As a safety precaution, two nearby schools were placed on lockdown; Crescent Elementary School and Crescent Primary.