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Sarah Dallof reporting One of Utah's most wanted is in jail tonight, but it wasn't easy. Allen Joseph Katoa led police on two car chases in two days before he was finally arrested.
Police say Katoa was on the Department of Corrections' most wanted list. He was wanted for probation violations.
Sgt. Marcelo Rapela of the Midvale Police Department said, "Allen Joseph Katoa has a long criminal history involving stolen vehicles, stolen property, drugs, gang affiliations."
Metro Gang Unit officers first spotted Katoa, who goes by a list of aliases, Thursday night.
"They attempted to stop him and during that time he apparently tried to run down one of the Metro Gang Unit," Rapela said.
Katoa led officers on a brief chase. They called it off, saying it was too dangerous to continue. Then late last night, another sighting. This time Katoa was riding in the back of a friend's car. The friend pulled over, but the chase was just starting.
"The suspect they were looking for, Allen Joseph Katoa, jumped out of the back seat into the front seat ... and began to drive the vehicle," Rapela explained.
For about 12 minutes Katoa led law enforcement officers from four agencies on a high-speed chase. "It sounded like they varied anywhere between 50 to 80 miles per hour," Rapela told us.
The Utah Highway Patrol tracked the car with its helicopter, allowing officers on the ground to back off when things got too risky, and allowing them to set up for a pit maneuver near 7900 South and 700 East.
"There were very minimal injuries to everyone, including the suspect," according to Rapela.
Katoa's face was scratched by broken glass from the pit maneuver. Police say they were forced to use the maneuver to stop their suspect.
Katoa is now in jail on charges of assaulting a police officer, failing to obey police, and driving under the influence.
