Police: Outfits gave it away

A Lake Forest man is due in court today on charges he fled from Newport Beach police after he and his mustachioed friend were chased by authorities who said they were acting suspicious.

Joseph Louis Keys, 41, was arrested Saturday morning in the carpool lane of the northbound 405 Freeway near Euclid Street after police said he and another man were seen changing clothes and putting on fake mustaches in Corona del Mar and drove away from police.

About 10 a.m. Saturday, a Corona del Mar resident saw Keys and another man “acting suspiciously” and putting on what could’ve been disguises, said Newport Beach police Lt. Rob Morton. Police got in the area and found Keys and a passenger driving up MacArthur Boulevard and onto the northbound 73 Freeway, all the while police were behind them, Morton said.

“I’m sure they knew our officers were behind them,” Morton said.

When the 73 Freeway turns into the 405 northbound, the tailing officer hit his lights and tried to pull Keys over, Morton said. Keys continued on and pulled over in the carpool lane near Harbor Boulevard and let the passenger out, police said. The passenger had to cross southbound traffic, then ran through the bushes and toward the Vagabond Inn motel to get away, Morton said.

“He’s out there, Frogger, in the middle of the southbound lanes,” Morton said. “I can’t believe he wasn’t killed.”

The passenger, who police did not locate, dropped a bag into the bushes that had wigs and loaded handguns inside, Morton said.

“We’re confident they were going to do a robbery,” he said.

After Keys let his partner out, he started to drive away again, but soon gave up, police said. He was arrested on the freeway near Euclid Street and booked on suspicion of conspiracy to commit robbery.