Teen, man killed after pursuit ends in fiery Avondale crash

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Police say two people are dead after a vehicle fled from police in west Phoenix before crashing into a store in Avondale and erupting in flames early Saturday morning.

What we know:

According to Phoenix Police, officers tried stopping a vehicle that was driving recklessly near 91st Avenue and Buckeye Road at around 1:30 a.m. on June 28. The driver, later identified as 18-year-old Sergio Lara-Garcia, didn’t stop and sped away from the officers.

The car was seen getting onto westbound Interstate 10. A police helicopter spotted the vehicle and followed. The vehicle drove to the area of Dysart and Buckeye Roads where police say it lost control as it drove over railroad tracks and crashed into a store and caught fire. 

Officers and firefighters responded and put out the flames. Lara-Garcia and a teenage passenger, 16-year-old Julian Lugo-Estrada, were taken to a hospital where they both died.

Map of where the crash happened