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Bremerton woman fights off man trying to steal truck with child inside

BREMERTON, Wash. — A Bremerton woman fought off a man who was trying to steal her truck with a 2-year-old inside as he was behind the wheel of her moving vehicle. The incident was caught on surveillance video.

Police say the attempted theft happened in the 1500 block of Elizabeth Avenue at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

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The video shows a woman approaching her truck as a man is running down the street toward her. As she begins to open the truck’s bed cover, she then sees the man is in her truck and confronts him. The driver’s side door is open as the truck lurches forward, backward and then makes a hard turn, coming to a stop in front of a neighbor’s yard during the struggle.  The would-be thief is then seen fleeing down the street.

Police say the suspect punched the victim in the face during the struggle, but the woman prevailed and the man ran off.

Bicycle officers in the area located the fleeing 24-year-old man, and one officer ran after him in what ended up being a lengthy chase on Elizabeth Avenue.

Police said during the chase, the man tried to get into a parked car by using a key, but was unsuccessful. He continued running toward 11th Street, and once there, jumped into the bed of a truck stopped at a red light at 11th and Warren Avenue.  Officers confronted the man there, but he jumped out and continued to run.

Eventually, he ran into a home in the 1000 block of Warren Avenue, where he was confronted by the occupants. They told him to get out, but he continued to walk toward them with a gold key in his hand, according to police. The man only left the house when he heard sirens in the area.

By that time, there were several officers in the area who chased the fleeing man. A short distance later, the suspect slipped, fell to the ground and was taken into custody.

Because it was believed that the man may have been under the influence of drugs, he was treated by medics at the scene. During that time, the suspect kicked one of the medics in the face, according to officers.

After he was examined at Harrison Medical Center, he was booked into the Kitsap County Jail.