Robbery suspects crash car into apartment fleeing from SFPD

SAN FRANCISCO - A car into an apartment, guns found on scene, and a hit-and-run crash in the Richmond District of San Francisco left a neighborhood shaken up.

SFPD said it happened after a robbery nearby, while the suspects were trying to get away. The suspects were caught after a neighborhood search.

It all began when police were called to a robbery at the corner of Balboa Street and 26th Avenue at around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

"They threw a woman down, took her bag, jumped in the car and were running away and the cops saw them," said a neighbor and witness on scene, Josh Steele.

Police said they started to chase the suspects, but the officers ended their pursuit for the safety of people in the area.

Meanwhile, the suspects in a gray Honda Accord continued onto Cabrillo Street.

Witnesses said the gray Honda Accord was coming down Cabrillo speeding between 65 and 70 mph, before it hit a Mini Cooper in the intersection. The Mini Cooper crashed into a pole, while the Honda slammed into a building on 8th Avenue.

Dennis Crosby, who lives in a flat right above the impacted unit, said the elderly man who lives in the apartment was narrowly missed.

"That is the wall to his bedroom, his bed is on the other side of the wall thankfully," said Crosby, who felt the building shake during the impact.

"Right when the crash happened, I walked across the intersection and got about halfway through and the two guys jumped out, one ran this way, one ran this way," Steele said. "I stupidly gave a little chase out of the guy, but it looked like he had a gun so I turned back around."

Steele said he then checked on the woman in the Mini Cooper, who identified herself as Christina Swanson. 

Steele said he saw a gun on the floorboard of the suspect’s car. 

Witnesses snapped a photo of the two men after the crash and shared it with officers.

"About 20 minutes later, they were still hanging around the neighborhood," said Crosby.

Eventually, the police detained two people.

"It’s an act of God that there was nobody standing on this corner when this car came through," said Jen Nossokoff, who lives down the street and is running for D1 Supervisor.

"This is preventable. We can prevent things like this with safer street designs," she added.

Neighbors said the community is quiet and tight-knit. 

"This kind of stuff doesn’t happen too often in this neighborhood, it’s pretty quiet out here most of the time," said Crosby.

The man who lives in the impacted unit was displaced. 

Swanson said she's spent the day in the hospital with some scratches and possibly bruised ribs.

Thankfully, there were no life-threatening injuries.

Investigators are asking anyone with information to contact SFPD at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD. You may remain anonymous.