Update: CHP arrests unlicensed speeding driver in Paso Robles

Updated 3 p.m. Sunday

The California Highway Patrol tried to stop a speeding silver Cadillac westbound on Highway 46 in Paso Robles on Saturday, when the driver decided to step on it and flee toward Highway 101, according to San Luis Obispo CHP Sgt. Tom Horne.

According to a news release, a Templeton-area patrol officer driving westbound on Highway 46 saw a silver 2003 Cadillac going eastbound at a extremely high rate.

When the officer made a u-turn, the car pulled away at speeds exceeding 100 mph, according to CHP.

A few minutes later, the vehicle spun out of control. The vehicle then continued eastbound while swerving in and out of traffic and passing cars using the right shoulder in a reckless manner, the release said.

The suspect tried to transition onto the Highway 101 southbound on-ramp. The vehicle lost control again and spun out back across the lanes into Highway 46 where the vehicle stopped, blocking one of the lanes.

The driver took off running on Black Oak Drive in Paso Robles. Alejandro AriasLopez, 23, of Salinas, was eventually located by CHP officers and arrested.

Officers had chased the AriasLopez, barefoot and wearing jeans and a purple long-sleeved shirt, after the car spun out but lost sight of him when he ran behind a McDonald’s restaurant.

The CHP Helicopter H70 was called in to help; Paso Robles Police Department officers also assisted.

Two women were still in the car, Horne said, but were not injured nor arrested. The incident began about 3:45 p.m.

Police discovered AriasLopex was unlicensed and had two outstanding warrants out of Monterey County and a protective order in place, protecting one of the female passengers from him.

This story was originally published April 18, 2020 at 7:41 PM.