Burglary suspect driving U-Haul pickup takes his own life following pursuit across Inland Empire

INLAND EMPIRE, Calif. -- (KTLA) -- A 42-year-old man accused of stealing handguns fatally shot himself after authorities chased the U-Haul truck he was driving across the Inland Empire Wednesday afternoon, officials said.

The man had gone to a relative's business in the 12800 block of Joy Street in Garden Grove, where he promised to return several firearms he allegedly stole during a burglary in Fullerton in 2017, Garden Grove police said in a news release.

The family member he was returning the guns to called police to let them know what was expected to take place. The pursuit driver had been identified as a suspect in the burglary, but no arrests had been made, authorities said.

Police responded to the business around 4:50 p.m., when the relative said the man was knocking on the back door in an attempt to lure him outside.

As officers were walking up, the armed man got into a U-Haul pickup and fled. He stopped briefly when officers tried to pull him over at the intersection of Brookhurst Street and Lampson Avenue, but soon took off, police said.