Woman’s body found in trunk of kidnapping suspect’s car in SoCal police pursuit

A police pursuit in El Cajon this week turned into a homicide investigation after police arrested the driver and found a woman’s body in the trunk.

El Cajon Police responded to reports of a possible kidnapping shortly before 5 p.m. Monday in the San Diego County city.

The caller reported the suspected kidnapper was driving a black Hyundai Sonata, police announced in a news release. Officers found the vehicle near the intersection of Madison and Magnolia avenues.

The driver sped away when officers tried to pull him over, starting a car chase that began and ended in El Cajon after making a circle through Spring Valley. The driver hit two other vehicles during the pursuit, police said. No one was injured in the collisions, and the driver was taken into custody after officers used a stun gun.

When officers searched the vehicle, they found a woman’s body in the trunk, according to the El Cajon Police Department. There was no immediate information about a cause of death. Police have not released the driver’s name.

News station KNSD reports the woman was 51 years old, and witnesses said the pursuit started at a Motel 6 in El Cajon.

“I just heard yelling,” Ian Forbes, a guest at the motel, told the news station. “I didn’t know what was going on.”

Anyone with information about the case can call El Cajon Police at (619) 579-3311 or submit an anonymous tip at sdcrimestoppers.org.