GRANTS PASS, Ore. – Investigators have publicly identified a Grants Pass carjacking suspect.
Police said on Tuesday morning, a man pulled an elderly driver and a passenger out of a 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe in the north Grants Pass Safeway parking lot. The man then drove away in the vehicle.
A description of the stolen SUV was quickly sent out to surrounding police agencies.
At 12:24 p.m., Grants Pass police were told California Highway Patrol officers were pursuing the Hyundai southbound on Interstate 5 in the Mt. Shasta area. Just a few minutes later, the vehicle crashed at a high rate of speed south of Dunsmuir.
The suspect was reportedly ejected from the vehicle and was taken to a hospital to be treated for serious injuries.
Grants Pass police initially said the identity of the man was being withheld due to his medical condition. However, Wednesday morning police identified the suspect as Andrew Paul Soliz Jr.
According to investigators, Soliz was released from the hospital on Tuesday and was put behind bars in the Siskiyou County Jail.
“The Grants Pass Police Department would like to thank all who assisted with the investigation and apprehension,” officers said. “We especially want to thank our community partner Safeway and our professional partner the California Highway Patrol.”
Anyone with further information about this case is asked to call the Grants Pass police non-emergency line at 541-450-6260 and reference case #21-39993.
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