The L.A. County District Attorney’s Office filed two charges Thursday in connection with a suspect arrested by California Highway Patrol officers with the Newhall-area Office.
Ian Kianduma Karune, 20, of Los Angeles, faces felony charges of fleeing from CHP officers and taking a car without the owner’s consent.
The charges from the DA’s Office also allege Karune has a previous criminal violation, that he previously violated his probation and that he was on probation at the time of his current violation.
Karune pleaded not guilty at his initial arraignment at L.A. County Superior Court in San Fernando, where he was remanded to custody and held in lieu of $125,000 bail. His bail was later raised to $200,000, according to LASD custody records available online.
A spokesman for the Newhall CHP office said Karune was seen driving a stolen GMC southbound on Sierra Highway, near Palmdale Boulevard, and he was pursued all the way to the Roscoe Boulevard exit for Interstate 405.
The official indicated Karune did not stop after hitting spike strips, despite having one tire deflated.
The criminal complaint also notes Karune “has suffered prior convictions as an adult and sustained petitions in juvenile delinquency proceedings that are numerous and of increasing seriousness, within the meaning of California Rules of Court Rule.”
He’s due back in court Oct. 13 for the scheduling of his preliminary hearing. At a preliminary hearing, a judge hears the prosecution’s case, any affirmative defense, and then determines whether there’s enough potential evidence to prove guilt at a trial.
He’s currently being held at the Twin Towers jail facility in Downtown Los Angeles.
