Suspect Arrested After Hours-Long Chase Stretches From Pomona to Lancaster Following Double Killing
POMONA, CALIFORNIA – A man accused of shooting two people to death in a Pomona apartment hallway was taken into custody Thursday night after leading California Highway Patrol officers on a pursuit that covered dozens of miles of freeway, mountain road, and city streets before ending with a PIT maneuver in Lancaster.
Pomona police were called to an apartment building around 3:30 p.m. Thursday after reports of a shooting on Garey Avenue. Officers arriving at the scene found a man and a woman shot to death in a hallway of the complex. Investigators identified the suspected gunman as 48 year old Robert Galtman, who fled before officers arrived.
The search for Galtman quickly turned into a pursuit. California Highway Patrol units spotted a Kia sedan matching the description wanted out of Pomona just before 5 p.m. and began following the vehicle northbound on the 5 Freeway through the Santa Clarita Valley. Officers treated the driver as armed and dangerous throughout the chase.
Pursuit Crosses Lanes and Mountain Roads
The driver evaded spike strips deployed early in the pursuit and kept moving for miles, at one point crossing the freeway median and doubling back onto the southbound side of the 5 before weaving through traffic near Newhall. The car later exited onto Lake Hughes Road, a narrow, winding mountain route, where the driver swerved across double yellow lines and was seen throwing multiple objects, including what appeared to be liquid, out of the vehicle as officers trailed behind.
From there the chase moved onto surface streets near Elizabeth Lake Road and Lookabout Road before continuing into Lancaster, where it entered a more populated stretch of the Antelope Valley. Aerial footage showed at least four CHP patrol vehicles involved as the pursuit pushed into the city.
Spike Strip and PIT Maneuver End the Chase in Lancaster
Just after 7 p.m., officers deployed a spike strip on West Avenue K that flattened at least two of the car’s tires, slowing it significantly. CHP units then executed a PIT maneuver near 20th Street West and West Avenue K, spinning the vehicle to a stop. Video from the scene showed the driver stepping out and complying with officers, who approached with weapons drawn before taking him into custody and clearing the vehicle.
Galtman was booked in connection with the Pomona killings. Authorities have not released details on a possible motive or the relationship between the suspect and the two victims, and the investigation remains ongoing.
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