Police take man involved in Valleywide pursuit into custody

PHOENIX — Local authorities took a man into custody after a Valleywide pursuit Friday afternoon.

Police say a car was blocking the roadway near Cave Creek and Deer Valley roads around 2:30 p.m. on Friday.

Inside, police found an adult man that appeared to be passed out, along with weapons and what they believed to be drugs.

Two marked police vehicles blocked the car from the front and back. Police say the driver woke up and began driving his vehicle into both police vehicles, eventually being able to break away and drive off.

A police helicopter and detectives from Phoenix's tactical support bureau followed the car.

Aerial footage shows the sedan driving across several Valley freeways and roads.

Authorities fired less-than-lethal rounds after they used a grappler to stop the vehicle near 48th Street and Interstate 10, 25 miles away from the original intersection.

"A net deploys and as the net comes in contact with the rotating tire, the tire pulls the net up and over, so it gets entangled with the axle," said Leonard Stock.

Stock invented the tool, here in the Valley years ago, which some law enforcement agencies use to stop cars during pursuits.

It look just seconds before the car came to a stop despite the driver's efforts to keep going.

"It was textbook. The police officers had it all planned out where they had proper backup and they chose where they were going to stop that vehicle," said Stock.

A K-9 was sent into the car and authorities were then able to detain the driver.

The driver was taken to the hospital shortly after the pursuit.

Officers say they found weapons and what appeared to be drugs inside the car.

The suspect has since been identified as 30-year-old Brandon Smith. He was booked into jail on numerous charges including misconduct involving weapons, drug possession, and unlawful flight from law enforcement.

This is a developing story. Stay with abc15.com for the latest updates.