North Riverside police said Wednesday at about 6 p.m., officers tried to pull over a car related to a matter that happened earlier in the day at North Riverside Park Mall. During the stop, the car fled the scene, heading toward 23rd and Harlem Avenue where it struck a pedestrian.
The 55-year-old man was critically injured and taken to a hospital for treatment, where he remains.
The suspect fled that scene on foot and ran to a nearby car wash looking for a getaway vehicle.
Alex Borkoviskay was vacuuming at the car wash when he saw the man running up.
"He ran around the corner and saw the cars and started running toward me. I check the key, and the key is in the ignition so I started going around to grab it and he beat me to the car," he said. "I just tried muscling him out, I was like no, this is my car."
Borkoviskay said he tried to fight back and pull the suspect out of his van when an officer came running in with a taser.
"He fired the taser and the car went in reverse, and he just ran back, so he hit me and the police officer," he recounted. "I flew into the vacuum."
"As I go outside to check I see a van, doors wide open, doors broken, and due is speeding away very fast and all that," said witness Andre Mendez.
Berwyn police said two officers from different agencies were injured during that incident and both are expected to be OK. But the suspect was able to drive off down Harlem, making his way to 23rd and Grove in Berwyn, where residents heard him crash outside their homes.
"It was just absolute craziness," said Patrick Broncato, resident. "Car came here on the side street, we heard a really big commotion, stuff falling off the car and we thought it had maybe hit some cars here and came out front and the car essentially parked in front of the house and some man running through some yards out the other way."."
Police said the suspect once again fled on foot through the neighborhood as officers were seen on just about every block in the area Wednesday night, searching for him.
Borkovsky said he is thankfull he was not seriously hurt.
"I just have a few scrapes. Nothing horrible happened; a car is a car, it will get replaced," he said.
Police said they are working several leads but have not made any arrests as of Thursday afternoon.