Officer hurt when man steals and then crashes LAPD patrol vehicle

It happened near downtown around 3:30 a.m. Sunday.

A Los Angeles police officer was injured early Sunday when she was ejected from her patrol vehicle after it was stolen by a man who then crashed it, officials said.

The officer had been working a security detail at 12th and Figueroa streets near downtown around 3:30 a.m. when a man approached her SUV and managed to get inside, according to the police department.

The man drove several blocks before crashing, police said.

“The suspect drove off with the police vehicle and at some point the officer was ejected from the vehicle,” the department said on the social platform X.

ABC7 later reported the officer was dragged by the moving vehicle.

Photos of the scene posted by KTLA-TV show the police SUV crashed into a pole, its front end severely damaged as an overturned bike and scooters lay amid debris on a sidewalk.

The suspect was apprehended as he tried to run away from the scene.

The officer was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries and listed as stable.

A department spokesperson said no other information was available Sunday afternoon.