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August 30, 2006 California State University, Fresno
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August 30, 2006 California State University, Fresno |
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By Benjamin Baxter
The Collegian
Fresno and Clovis police shut down two major streets near Fresno State Tuesday morning following an attempted bank robbery and chase through both cities.
Students trying to reach campus using Barstow or Cedar entrances found themselves locked out by the police perimeter established shortly after 9 a.m.
Fresno police said two men they were pursuing after an attempted bank robbery in Clovis fled through the Fresno State campus using Barstow Avenue before entering an apartment complex near the school.
Police announced the arrest of one man in the early afternoon and the arrest of another in the early evening.
The perimeter established by police lasted into the mid afternoon, while Barstow Avenue remained closed for evidence collection.
The situation began about an hour before the streets were closed, when police were alerted to an attempted bank robbery at 8:17 a.m. by a silent alarm in conjunction with a cell phone call from a concerned citizen outside the 20 W. Shaw Citibank near Villa Avenue.
The Clovis Police department immediately dispatched seven squad cars to the scene, according to Clovis Police Chief Jim Zulim.
Zulim said two men left the bank by car and fired at pursuing officers as they fled towards the Fresno State campus.
A 20-year veteran of the Clovis police force was reported injured in the course of the chase but was reported to be in good condition.
The chase then crossed into Fresno, where Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer said the suspects appeared to be “shooting randomly, or where they thought police officers were located.”
The chase entered Fresno State property on westbound Barstow Avenue around 9 a.m.
While driving through campus, Fresno State Police Chief David Huerta said the men crashed into the car of a Fresno State student and nearly hit a pedestrian.
“The suspect vehicle sideswiped one of our students, and we believe they may have impacted other vehicles while they traversed California State University, Fresno,” he said. “I’d estimate that they were going 45-50 mph going through campus.
“That’s pretty fast considering that’s usually a 20-25 mph zone,” Huerta said.
Huerta asked any eyewitnesses or students whose cars were damaged in the chase to contact the police department.
After driving through campus, police said the suspects crashed their getaway car into a building at Cedar Tree Apartments and exchanged fire with police before running into the buildings.
After a multiple hour search, law enforcement officials from the three departments involved in the pursuit announced the arrest of one man who was found in area.
The arrest of a second suspect was announced later in the evening.
Huerta said the Fresno State campus was lucky the chase did not occur earlier in the morning when more students were arriving for classes.
“It was very good fortune that it didn’t occur 10 minutes earlier,” he said. “Had it, we would have had hundreds of students crossing that roadway.
“With traffic control out at the time, we probably could have ended much worse than it has today,” Huerta said.
The streets taken by suspects and police in the course of the chase remained closed until the early evening.
The Clovis Police Department has announced that it will head the investigation of the robbery while the Fresno Police Department pursuit will investigate the shootings throughout Barstow and Cedar Avenues.
Dyer thanked the agencies involved with the pursuit and investigation. “We have truly great interagency cooperation, good communications, and I feel that as a result of that we’ve been able to identify both suspects,” he said.
Added Dyer, “We’re fortunate that no one was seriously injured or killed in any of this.”
Katrina Garcia and Bradley Hart also contributed to this report.
