Suspected Auto Thief Busted After Ramming Agent’s Cars

A 19-year-old man was arrested in Fremont on Monday after he allegedly rammed his vehicle into San Mateo County Vehicle Theft Task Force agents' cars in East Palo Alto and then fled across the Dumbarton Bridge.

The collision occurred around 2 p.m. at Rutgers and Fordham streets as task force agents were attempting to detain the man, Tywaun Livingston, of East Palo Alto, in connection with a car theft, task force officials said.

Livingston, who had active arrest warrants for weapons and narcotics offenses, allegedly sped toward the agents' vehicles in the stolen car as they exited the vehicles, task force spokesman John Munsey said.

One agent fired his gun, and Livingston fled and drove across the Dumbarton Bridge, Munsey said.

Fremont police were notified that he was headed into their city, and officers responded to assist, Fremont police Sgt. Jeff Campbell said.

Officers caught up with Livingston on foot in the area of Paseo Padre Parkway and Fremont Boulevard, and he was taken into custody, Campbell said. The car he was driving was found about a block away.

A perimeter was set up to search for a passenger believed to have been in the vehicle, but the search was called off when it was determined that the passenger had exited the car before it crossed the bridge, Campbell said.

Livingston was arrested on suspicion of vehicle theft, assaulting a peace officer with a deadly weapon, possession of stolen property, and driving with willful disregard for personal safety while fleeing from police officers.

The task force and East Palo Alto police are jointly investigating the incident.

Livingston appeared in the news late last year when he was injured in a shooting in East Palo Alto. The shooting happened around 9 p.m. on Dec. 14 as he was walking with a friend in the 100 block of Verbena Drive, police said.

Livingston suffered a gunshot wound to the torso and was treated at Stanford Hospital.

--Bay City News