A standoff between police and a man pursuing an armed suspect in Anaheim on Friday lasted several hours, forcing the 91 Freeway to be completely shut down. The standoff ended around noon, with the suspect lying in the street with a fatal gunshot wound.
According to the Corona Police Department, the suspect died by suicide.
Eastbound lanes of the 91 Freeway at Imperial Highway reopened shortly after, while westbound lanes remained closed as police officers investigated until 3:38 p.m.
Prior to the standoff, police had been pursuing him because the driver was wanted for an armed pursuit incident in Corona around 8 a.m. The suspect led police onto the 91 Freeway, shutting it down and causing a traffic jam for miles, after which drivers turned around and began driving in the wrong direction.
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For hours, the suspect sat in a blue sedan stuck in the middle of the highway between two black law enforcement vehicles. Caltrans announced the freeway closure at 9 a.m., and the standoff continued until the afternoon.
The Corona Police Department’s Crisis Negotiation Team spoke by phone with the suspect, who police said was armed and dangerous.
Caltrans officials said just before 9 a.m. that the freeway closure had been extended from the area between the 91 Freeway and the 55 Freeway to the area around the Lakeview Avenue exit on the 91.
Some of the people stuck in the traffic jam started to move back around 10 a.m., and the highway was nearly empty by 11 a.m. The California Highway Patrol helped drivers get off the blocked highway, officials said.
The police response included more than a dozen law enforcement officers, some with guns pointed at the car, as well as two K-9 units.
Two elementary schools in the area — Orange Unified Pre-K and Crescent Elementary School — ordered students to shelter-in-place due to the incident, school officials said. At Orange Unified, parents and buses were able to pick up students early.
Aerial footage from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. showed cars packed close to each other on the highway, with at least a dozen patrol vehicles following behind.
The CHP confirmed the pursuit ended, and the case was closed following an ensuing criminal investigation.
It appeared that there had been a traffic accident in an area of ​​traffic jam, where a truck was parked horizontally on the highway.
“Please avoid this area and use caution while driving,” Caltrans said in a traffic alert.
Caltrans provides drivers with real-time traffic updates via a map, which can be found here.
Mark Liu contributed to this report.
