A group of bystanders pursued and restrained a suspected car thief after he allegedly sped a stolen Tesla along a busy pedestrian walkway in San Diego, hitting a woman and causing severe injuries, authorities said.
Footage from the scene appears to show 39-year-old Juan Antonio Gonzaba abandoning the Tesla — which police described to several local outlets as stolen — before running across a parking lot.
Alex Srour, a witness at the scene, gave chase. He caught up with Gonzaba and shoved him as he ran, sending the suspect to the ground.
“I hear somebody behind me just scream like, ‘Watch out.’ And then I look and there’s like a Tesla just barreling at me going like 70 miles an hour,” Srour told KABC-TV.
Juan Antonio Gonzaba runs away after allegedly driving a stolen Tesla through a pedestrian walkway. (Storyful / @alexhsrour via Storyful)
The San Diego Sheriff’s Office said Gonzaba was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, hit-and-run and auto theft over the San Diego Tesla incident.
Srour, who captured the confrontation using smart glasses, said the Tesla clipped him as it tore down the pedestrian boardwalk.
Aerial video shows the Tesla that Juan Antonio Gonzaba allegedly stole before driving it through a San Diego pedestrian boardwalk. (Storyful / @alexhsrour via Storyful)
“He hit my bike and it like pushed me really, it like launched me off to the side,” Srour told KABC, noting that pedestrians would not ordinarily expect a vehicle to race through the boardwalk.
Prosecutors told KNSD-TV that Gonzaba allegedly hit a 25-year-old woman, who was hospitalized with a fractured spine, broken ribs and a laceration requiring 20 stitches.
Gonzaba is being held without bail in the San Diego Central Jail after prosecutors noted that he has an extensive criminal history, KNSD reported.
Juan Antonio Gonzaba on the ground after being chased by citizens who witnessed him drive a car through a crowded pedestrian walkway. (Storyful / @alexhsrour via Storyful)
If convicted on all charges, Gonzaba faces up to 24 years in prison, prosecutors said Wednesday. Gonzaba pleaded not guilty to all charges during his arraignment, KNSD reported.
News Media contacted the San Diego Police Department and the San Diego District Attorney’s Office for further comment.