Suspect in fatal pursuit crash re-arrested after escaping from Colton hospital
COLTON, Calif. - Officials said the suspect accused of running out of the hospital after he was allegedly involved in a deadly police chase in Fontana is back in custody.
The suspect, identified by authorities as 32-year-old Noe Armando Banuelos of Long Beach, led California Highway Patrol officers on a chase after refusing to pull over.
Banuelos was reportedly driving a white Jeep Cherokee and was initially stopped for speeding.
Authorities said Banuelos suddenly fled the scene and continued speeding on the southbound lanes of the 15 Freeway on a chase into Fontana. The pursuit came to a tragic ending when authorities said the suspect slammed into the driver of a red Ford Mustang at Cherry and Beech avenues, where CHP officers quickly apprehended him.
Following the collision, the driver of the Ford Mustang was pronounced dead at the scene. Banuelos was transported to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton to treat his injuries sustained in the crash.
Investigators said just before 7 p.m., Banuelos managed to escape from CHP custody while being transferred from the hospital to the jail.
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Following an intense manhunt with help from the Colton and Rialto Police departments, Banuelos was eventually found on an abandoned golf course near the hospital on the 400 block of N. Pepper Avenue in Colton and taken back into CHP custody.
It was later revealed that Banuelos had a federal arrest warrant, according to the CHP.