Man arrested after high-speed car chase

An Escondido man driving a 1996 Ford Thunderbird led California Highway Patrol officers on a high-speed chase Friday night that ended in a crash that left one other person injured and three cars damaged, officials said.

A Westminster Highway Patrol officer attempted to stop the 65-year-old man for speeding on the southbound 405) Freeway, just south of Harbor Blvd. in Costa Mesa. The driver reportedly refused to pull over and continued to drive in excess of 100 mph onto the 55 Freeway. But when traffic slowed near the end of the freeway at 19th Street, the driver of the Thunderbird slammed into the back of a 2007 Mazda 3, according to a California Highway Patrol news release.

The Thunderbird then hit a BMW. The driver hit a parked car at 19th Street before crashing through a chain-link fence in Costa Mesa, according to the release.

The driver of the Thunderbird was taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, where he was treated for minor injuries and arrested on suspicion of felony evading, the release said.

— Amanda Pennington