ATLANTA — A search for a luxury car tied to a dozen crimes in Atlanta escalated Thursday night during a police chase in Buckhead.
Police have been staked out on Roswell Road for days, trying to catch the accused thieves.
Cellphone video a witness gave Channel 2 Action News shows part of an Atlanta police pursuit near Peachtree and Piedmont roads.
Speeds reached nearly 100 mph before police canceled the pursuit due to safety concerns.
"I think the most disturbing part is that they don't really have a moral compass," Deputy Chief Jeff Glazier, with the Atlanta Police Department, told Channel 2's Matt Johnson.
The officers were after the people in a black Mercedes-Benz tied to at least 12 car break-ins and gun thefts across metro Atlanta.
"How dare you get in my vehicle?" That's what Nadine Mines said she told a thief right before he ran away and jumped in the Mercedes-Benz.
She said it happened within a matter of seconds while she was pumping gas at the QT on Howell Mill Road on Wednesday afternoon.
TRENDING STORIES:
- President Trump announces deal to temporarily reopen government
- Search continues for 'armed and dangerous' man police say killed 4, injured another
- 20s to start the weekend -- and possible snow headed our way
"Put the pump on, shut the cover and turned around and saw somebody in the truck," Mines said.
A witness snapped a picture of the getaway car right before Mines said a person inside tried to steal her husband's Jeep.
"The longer they go without getting caught, the more they think they can get away with it," Mines said.
Glazier said the three or four suspects rented the Mercedes-Benz with fraudulent information.
“It’s been seen in our downtown space, in east Atlanta. It's been seen in Sandy Springs, Dunwoody, Brookhaven, so it’s been hitting a lot of areas,” Glazier said.
He said officers also canceled the chase Thursday because the suspects were driving on sidewalks and sideswiping cars.
“The terminating the pursuit never bothers me because we're going to catch these guys eventually, but we want to do it in a safe manner,” Glazier said.
Police said they have pictures and videos of the suspects in the act, but so far, they have not been able to identify them.
Cox Media Group
