When the suspect tried to run, sending police on a 90-mph chase, they found themselves in the middle of a frantic, 2-hour chase. However, all came to a sudden halt when a brave truck driver did one thing.
On a Tuesday afternoon, big rig truck driver Ahmed Shaaban was in a special position to assist law enforcement. A high-speed pursuit between the police and a man in a black pickup truck led to the start of everything. Shaaban noticed the guy speeding along a California freeway in Pomona and decided to assist the police.
After authorities in Riverside County tried to question the suspect—identified as Michael Reed—about a murder, but instead of helping the police, the suspect sped away in a black pickup truck. Reed sped along the 60 Freeway for two hours while leading police on a frenzied chase, reaching speeds of 90 mph. Both police and TV helicopters were circling overhead as he made an effort to avoid the cops. Then Reed and Shaaban came into contact, according to reports.
Shaaban noticed many police cars tailing the black pickup truck being driven by the murder suspect as he approached a gas station in Pomona. The brave truck driver made the decision to intervene in order to stop the murder suspect while other vehicles on the road swiftly pulled out of the path. Shaaban chose to physically block the pickup’s route with his tractor-trailer rather than move out of the way.
Shaaban put an end to the two-hour pursuit by blocking off the roadway with his large vehicle, leading Reed to collide with the front of the semi-truck. Thanks to the trucker’s fast thinking and valiant actions, the 90 mph police chase with the murder suspect came to a stop when the suspect’s pickup truck crashed into Shaaban’s large rig, as shown in the dramatic video.
While speaking with Fox News’s Sean Hannity, Shaaban recalled, “I was looking in my right rearview mirror and I was watching him coming through the gas station, My intention really was to block the entire section, but by the time my truck reacted and he gunned his car and I gunned mine and we just slammed into each other.”
“I was looking in my right rearview mirror and I was watching him coming through the gas station,” the driver said.
Referring to what motivated him to take action, Shabaan said, “I just waited for the right moment and I blocked him and hit him because if I didn’t stop him, he was going to kill somebody else. I just thought to get him off the street. If I didn’t, and [officers] have been behind him for that long and didn’t stop him … I have the power,” Shaaban claimed to be aware that the pursuit was being led by a murder suspect. He was much more eager and willing to contribute to its end as a result.
Before Reed turned around and headed back up north into Los Angeles County, the chase began in Murrieta and extended all the way down into San Diego County. Prior to hitting a semi-truck, Reed was observed throughout the pursuit in the Pomona area driving on the wrong side of the road, into oncoming traffic, through numerous red lights, and on a sidewalk.
It’s a good thing Shaaban took matters into his own hands.
After the collision before emergency personnel arrived, Reed, who was wanted for questioning in connection with a murder in Riverside County, was restrained by police, Female passenger who was in Reed’s black pickup truck at the time was not arrested; instead, she was released. The woman, who only went by the name “Roxy,” gave an impromptu interview to the gathered media from the area.
Adding that when the cops began to pursue with their sirens on, she was taken aback, she said:
“We were hanging out and he said he wanted to help his friend in LA. I said, ‘I am down to roll. It’s all good. We’ll go help your friend.”
Roxy responded, “It might have been self-defense,” when asked whether her friend may have committed murder.
The courageous truck driver, thankfully, was not about to witness a murder suspect possibly taking additional lives. Instead, he threw himself directly in the way of danger, preventing Reed from escaping and putting an end to the perilous and possibly fatal pursuit.
That is a well-done task that merits appreciation. And regardless of whether the suspect was guilty of murder or not, Ahmed Shaaban is a hero. Even if he was innocent, Michael Reed endangered lives when he eluded law enforcement and gave them a 90-mph chase.
Watch the video below for more details:
Sources: TapHaps, Fox 11, CBS Los Angeles, Daily Mail