3 arrested in Kingsburg burglary after chase ends with crash

Two 20-year-olds and a teenager were arrested early Monday morning in connection with a burglary in Kingsburg that ended with two suspects crashing their getaway sport-utility vehicle into a power pole.

Fresno County sheriff’s spokesman Tony Botti said the incident started with the burglary in the 400 block of 6th Avenue Drive just before 2:30 a.m. Kingsburg police responded and two of the three suspects fled in a Nissan Pathfinder. The driver ignored police lights and sirens and the chase out of town westbound on Clarkson Avenue reached speeds of 80 mph to 100 mph, Botti said.

Officers stopped their pursuit as the SUV ran a stop sign at McCall Avenue. But officers and sheriff’s deputies saw an explosion farther west near Clarkson and Highway 43.

The suspects crashed into a power pole and the Pathfinder wound up in a vineyard. Authorities had to wait to approach the SUV because live power lines on the ground made the area unsafe.

The driver, a 17-year-old boy from Fowler, was arrested at the crash scene, according to Botti.

California Highway Patrol officers detained Jacob Garza, 20, of Kingsburg as he was walking about a mile from the crash site.

A witness to the burglary notified authorities that the third suspect, Marco Barrita-Pacheco, 20, of Fowler, was walking near the McDonald’s restaurant in Kingsburg, and he was detained, Botti said.

Stolen items from the burglarized home and a loaded handgun were found in the SUV, the sheriff’s spokesman said. Detectives served a search warrant at a home in the 4600 block of East Huntsman, south of Fowler and north of the getaway route. They found stolen property and clothing linking Barrita-Pacheco and the 17-year-old to the burglary, Botti said.

During an interview with Garza, Botti said, detectives determined he was involved with the burglary, as well.

All three face felony burglary charges, Botti said. Garza also is booked in the Fresno County jail on a charge of impersonating a police officer.

Detectives are working to return the stolen property to its owner.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 559-600-3111 or Crime Stoppers at 559-498-7867.

This story was originally published April 14, 2016 at 11:44 AM with the headline "3 arrested in Kingsburg burglary after chase ends with crash."