By Town Crier Staff Report

Four alleged car thieves escaped arrest Aug. 22 despite a massive manhunt in Los Altos that included K-9 units from the Mountain View and Los Altos police departments.

The men drove a stolen vehicle into Los Altos after allegedly shoplifting merchandise at 3:36 p.m. from a Mountain View department store, Mountain View police said.

A Los Altos police officer recognized the men and the car from the description in a police broadcast as they drove past on Springer Road. The men abandoned the vehicle in a resident’s driveway on Blinn Court after the officer made a U-turn to follow them, Sgt. Tom Connelly said.

Police set up a perimeter search on Springer and Blinn that included a yard-to-yard search, Connelly said, but they were unable to locate the men.

Mountain View police spokesman Jim Bennett said the crime spree began in Hayward earlier that day, when the men allegedly stole the blue Toyota Camry they used as the getaway car in Mountain View.

The men drove the car to Sears department store at San Antonio Shopping Center and proceeded to allegedly steal numerous clothing items from the store before fleeing into Los Altos.

Police discovered that the vehicle was stolen after they searched the ditched car and contacted the registered owner. The owner had not yet reported the car stolen, Bennett said.

Police recovered some of the stolen merchandise from the car’s cab and trunk.