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The emergency red lights on a police vehicle of the New South Wales Police Force parked on Queen Elizabeth Drive at Bondi Beach
The Los Angeles area has a reputation for spawning a steady stream of police chases that unfold on its highways and streets. That includes one that initially unfolded in the Pacific Palisades on Thursday and ended in the ocean after a suspect tried (and failed) to escape by swimming away.
Los Angeles is second only to New York City when it comes to the largest metro areas in the United States, as approximately 13 million people reside in the nearly 4,500 square miles that comprise the urban (and suburban) sprawl in Southern California.
L.A. was not designed to be a particularly walkable city, and while there are some public transportation options at your disposal, the vast majority of people who live there rely on a car to get around. There’s also naturally going to be plenty of crime to combat when you’re dealing with a population of that size, and those factors have combined to make the City of Angels the Police Chase Capital of the World.
The LAPD engaged in a grand total of 1,116 pursuits in 2024, and a good chunk of them were chronicled by the local news outlets that have helped the city earn the title I mentioned in the last paragraph thanks to the fleet of helicopters that tend to be dispatched at a moment’s notice when they learn a police chase is unfolding.
That was the case on Thursday morning, and we were treated to a very unique conclusion courtesy of a man who didn’t really put a ton of thought into his escape plan.
A police chase in the Pacific Palisades ended with lifeguards surrounding a man who fled into the ocean
According to ABC7, LAPD officers found themselves engaged in a foot pursuit in the Pacific Palisades around 7:15 A.M. on Tuesday morning involving a man who reportedly had a felony warrant.
He eventually led them to Will Rogers State Beach, where he decided to leap into the Pacific Ocean and continued to flee by swimming away.
A reporter who was in a helicopter that was dispatched to the scene noted he managed to make it at least 100 yards off the shore (although it seemed to be even farther), but his getaway was thwarted after he was greeted by some lifeguards and a couple of boats.
A suspect involved in a foot pursuit somehow ended up in the water at Will Rogers State Beach. Sky 5 @LAflyingcameras is overhead. pic.twitter.com/dIsiCPnNS9
— KTLA (@KTLA) July 16, 2026
Fox11 also sent a chopper that showed the unnamed suspect (who was reportedly “nude from the waist down”) scuffling with three lifeguards after they swooped in to apprehend him, but he was successfully detained after being dragged to a boat.
💥🛟 excellent work done by the @LACoLifeguards #WillRogersBeach#PacificPalisades
🎥: @Stu_Mundel https://t.co/UJypBpTEEB pic.twitter.com/sJ7SwYsNuM— ✨Kat~ (@Hey_its_Kat323) July 16, 2026
It is currently unclear what the man was wanted for in the first place, but it seems safe to assume he’ll be facing some more charges on top of any he’d already been hit with.