A suspect believed to be connected to multiple recent auto burglaries in the North Beach area and whom police say they found driving a stolen vehicle in the vicinity on Tuesday, now faces multiple possible charges stemming from a reckless chase through the city.
The SFPD arrested 24-year-old Robert Sonza of San Francisco on Tuesday night, and he's being held on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle, two counts of evading a police officer, three counts of assault by means likely to cause great bodily injury, reckless evading, and six counts of hit and run, among other charges.
As the department describes in a release, police were called to the area of Grant Avenue and Green Street at 9:37 p.m. Tuesday on a report of a stolen vehicle being used in connection with auto burglaries.
"Officers attempted to affect a traffic stop, but the vehicle failed to yield and fled from the officers without the officers in pursuit," the SFPD says.
Officers then soon spotted the vehicle at Union and Montgomery Streets, and observed the driver — allegedly Sonza — pull into a dead-end street. A squad car then, it sounds like, tried to block Sonza in, but he allegedly rammed the police car in an effort to escape the dead end.
The car then reportedly rammed a second occupied police vehicle at Alta and Montgomery streets, injuring one police officer.
The suspect vehicle then proceeded to Columbus Avenue and Broadway, where it reportedly struck a third vehicle, causing more injuries.
Sonza's car may have been disabled at that point, and he attempted to flee on foot, officers say. The SFPD says they ultimately apprehended and cuffed Sonza at Pacific Avenue and Beckett Street, about a block away.
Sonza is a repeat offender, from the sounds of it. And the SFPD's Central Station tweeted a mug shot of Sonza back in May 2019 when he was arrested after allegedly trying to use a credit card stolen in an auto burglary.
At the time, officers said he was suspected of two other car burglaries.
Plain Clothes officers arrested Robert Sonza for an auto burglary that occurred near Lombard and Hyde on May 18, 2019. Sonza was arrested after attempting to use a stolen credit card from the burglarized vehicle. Sonza was also connected to two other recent auto burglaries. pic.twitter.com/Ha0GbLmeL5
— SFPD Central Station (@SFPDCentral) May 22, 2019
Anyone with information about Tuesday's burglaries or the subsequent chase is asked to contact the SFPD at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and start the message with SFPD.
Photo of the intersection of Broadway and Columbus by Scott Sterbenz/Twitter
