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BERKELEY, Calif. — A Berkeley man allegedly threw a live grenade out of a car window while fleeing from California Highway Patrol officers on Friday, the highway patrol said Saturday.
Sgt. Andrew Barclay said that around 3:30 p.m., highway patrol officers assigned to Oakland tried to pull over the driver of a stolen vehicle near 38th Street and Cerritos Avenue.
The driver refused to stop, led them on a chase through Oakland and eventually entered Berkeley. As the driver passed the Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Rose Street intersection, Barclay said the driver threw a bag onto the street.
A highway patrol officer, not pursuing the suspect, stopped to check the bag and found what appeared to be a grenade. There was an immediate closure of the surrounding street and near people and businesses were evacuated.
Meanwhile, the driver continued to flee for another two blocks before turning onto a wrong-way street. He then got out of the car and tried to run from officers, Barclay said.
The suspect eventually surrendered and was arrested. Barclay said he was identified as 28-year-old Carlos Kuceja of Berkeley.
Highway patrol officers waited for a police department bomb team to check the vehicle, as they were unsure if there were more explosives. The vehicle was found not to have any explosives, but the highway patrol said the grenade was found to be a "live device capable of explosion."
A search warrant was served at the suspect's home by the California Highway Patrol, alongside the FBI and UC Police bomb team, to search for additional explosives.
Barclay said Kuceja was booked into the Alameda County Jail on suspicion of possession of an explosive device, fleeing from police, resisting arrest and possession of a stolen vehicle and other charges.
