A career criminal with a long rap sheet stands accused of stealing a Tesla in La Jolla, leading police on a chase through San Diego, and slamming into a woman on the Pacific Beach Boardwalk, leaving her hospitalized with fractured ribs and a fractured spine.
Juan Antonio Gonzaba, 39, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges stemming from Monday’s rampage. He faces up to 24 years and eight months in state prison if convicted on all counts.
Police say Gonzaba stole the Tesla in La Jolla and was spotted around 12:30 p.m. He fled when officers tried to pull him over, crashed into a roadside electrical transformer, and kept driving toward the crowded Pacific Beach Boardwalk, forcing pedestrians to scatter out of his path.
A 25-year-old woman was struck and suffered two fractured right ribs, two fractured vertebrae, and an abdominal laceration. She remained hospitalized as of Wednesday.
“A lot of people dove out of the way very quickly and it really could have been so much worse,” San Diego Fire Department public information officer Candace Hadley told NBC San Diego Monday. “This is a very busy boardwalk, having someone drive through this area is incredibly frightening.”
Gonzaba eventually ditched the Tesla and took off on foot, with bystanders giving chase. One witness, Alex Srour, captured the pursuit on Meta smart glasses while sprinting after the suspect until police caught up and made the arrest.
NBC 7 reports Gonzaba has an “extensive criminal history” that includes assault, battery, burglary, and grand theft — a record that raises immediate questions about how he was free to be behind the wheel of a stolen vehicle in the first place.
His arraignment Wednesday was reportedly as disorderly as the crime itself. Gonzaba acted erratically in the courtroom, banging his head against a glass wall while the judge repeatedly ordered him to be quiet.
Investigators suspect Gonzaba was under the influence during the rampage. Blood test results are still pending.
