Officials said a man and woman in possession of high-powered rifles took police on a chase on the 10 Freeway on Monday morning after robbing an Azusa shooting range.
The suspects were taken into custody on the westbound 10 Freeway around 7:10 a.m., about 40 minutes after the pursuit began, after one of the rear tires on their pickup truck blew out, police said.
The suspects entered Burro Canyon Shooting Range in Azusa around 6:30 p.m. and fired a couple of rounds, demanding all the weapons, witnesses told police. An official with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said they were able to get away with only accessories because the store's guns were locked up.
The suspects then jumped into a truck and got on the 10 Freeway, said Sgt. Edmundo Hummel of the Sheriff's Department. Their identities were not immediately available.
Near the end of the pursuit, the man, who was driving, got out of the truck with his hands up and appeared to be following the officers' directions. Then, inexplicably, he jumped back into the truck, drove a few more feet down the freeway and stopped again, following officers' directions as deputies took him into custody, Hummel said.
He appeared to take a drink of something before exiting the truck a second time, Hummel said. The woman, in the passenger seat, was taken into custody without incident.
Westbound traffic was backed up for miles after the freeway was shut down during the pursuit.
-- Catherine Saillant