Police chase suspect drives into ocean with dogs in back seat, tries to swim away

Pursuit suspect crashes into ocean

A police chase ended when the driver drove into the water off Marina Del Venice. Two dogs had to be rescued from the back seat.

LOS ANGELES - A woman was arrested in the ocean off of Venice over the weekend, after police said she led officers on a chase, then crashed into the ocean, before trying to swim away.

The chase broke out in Temple City around 11:30 p.m. Saturday night. According to the California Highway Patrol, officers tried to pull the woman over for speeding, but she drove off.

When she reached the coast, she just kept going, barreling the BMW into the water. Video showed the driver then getting out of the car and swimming out into the ocean.

It all happened near the Venice Pier. Angel Juarez was nearby when it all happened.

"I was just hanging out with some friends at the bar, and all of a sudden I see this car ride down into the water and I saw a bunch of CHP officers chasing it, get [out], go into the water," Juarez said. "And then I ran over there with some of my friends, and we looked, and the lady was swimming into the ocean, and it was pretty intense. And then, the Coast Guard came out. The police were here. Everyone was like, packed up on the pier. And that was probably one of the craziest things I've ever seen."

A police boat was able to take the driver into custody. Lifeguards were able to rescue several dogs left in the vehicle.

City News Service contributed to this report.

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