Suspected carjacker leads police on 100 mph chase before driving off cliff and into the ocean

A man has been arrested – and is lucky to be alive – after leading police on a chase at speeds of more than 100 mph that ended up with him driving off a cliff and into the Pacific Ocean.

The incident occurred at approximately 3:30 p.m. on June 30 near Santa Cruz, California, when authorities were responding to reports of a man shooting a handgun in the air near Davenport, California, according to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities say that not long after the initial incident, the same individual was suspected of carjacking a vehicle in the area and proceeded to flee the scene but when deputies located the vehicle and attempted to stop the car, the suspect fled.

“The suspect continued driving South towards the city of Santa Cruz reaching over 100 miles per hour, refusing to pull over,” said the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office in a statement on social media. “The suspect continued into the city of Santa Cruz down Mission Street where deputies terminated the pursuit for the safety of the community.”

The Santa Cruz Police Department located the vehicle shortly after when the suspect was involved in a solo vehicle traffic collision and ended up flying off of a cliff and into the Pacific Ocean.

Authorities say that the suspect was able to climb out of the vehicle and wade onto shore and up the rocky shoreline where deputies were able to take the suspect, who miraculously suffered no injuries in the accident, into custody without further incident.

Said the Santa Cruz Police Department in their own statement: “Thank you to all the involved Santa Cruz County agencies for helping out and keeping the community safe, and especially the SCFD & county wide rescue swimmers for deploying on a moment’s notice.”

The unnamed suspect is now awaiting charges in the incident as the investigation continues.