(KRON) — Officers with the Oakley Police Department arrested a man for the fifth time this year. In the most recent arrest on Thursday, he led officers on a police chase in a stolen car, officials said.
Around 9:11 a.m., officers said they saw a white Saturn driving recklessly near Main Street and Neroly Road in Oakley. They tried to conduct a traffic stop, but the driver of the Saturn took off, leading officers on a car chase into Antioch. The driver, later identified as Matthew Quiroz, 36, of Antioch, briefly yielded at an intersection before taking off again, police said. Eventually, Quiroz ended up driving down a dead end. Police said it seemed like he was about to continue fleeing on foot but instead surrendered.
A further investigation revealed the car Quiroz was driving was reported stolen earlier that day from Martinez. Officers said they also recognized Quiroz’s name as being wanted for a carjacking that happened in February.
On Feb. 22, officers said Quiroz got into a car with a female Door Dash driver during which they made several deliveries together. Officer said Quiroz threatened to kill the victim unless she drove to Vallejo to work for him as a prostitute. The victim drove to the end of Walnut Creek Grove before fleeing her car. Then, Quiroz drove away in it. The car was later found abandoned in Pleasant Hill.
Police were able to use DNA evidence to determine Quiroz as the suspect in this case.
This is not the first time Quiroz has been arrested this year. On Wednesday, he was arrested for lewd conduct and theft by the Antioch Police Department.
Quiroz’s string of arrests this year stretch back to February and include:
- Feb. 8: Arrested for being under the influence of drugs and unable to care for himself by Brentwood PD.
- Feb. 22: Identified–but not arrested–as the prime suspect for a carjacking with threats of harm or death by Oakley PD.
- March 5: Arrested for robbery, terrorist threats, false imprisonment and probation violation by Antioch PD.
- April 15: Arrested for public drunkenness by Antioch PD.
- April 26: Arrested for lewd conduct and theft by Antioch PD.
- April 27: Arrested for evading officers and possession of a stolen vehicle by Oakley PD.
“Matthew Quiroz has been arrested five times so far in 2023,” Oakley police officials said in a statement. “It appears as if Quiroz was released from jail (in Martinez) this morning (Thursday) for a crime he committed yesterday (Wednesday), and quite possibly the first thing he did was steal a car to come to Oakley.”
