Southern California man hospitalized after suspect steals coffee cart, leads police on wild chase

A man who was hospitalized after a suspect stole a coffee cart with him inside and led officers on a wild, multi-county pursuit recalls the terrifying ordeal.

“I thought I was going to die,” said the victim, Derek Strano, 37. 

On July 16, the suspect, Liam Preston Yanez, 28, jumped into a pickup truck that was also towing a coffee service trailer in Moorpark.

Little did the suspect know, Strano was still inside the coffee cart. At the time, Strano had gone inside the cart to prepare a drink for a family member who had arrived home for surgery.

As the truck suddenly took off, Strano was taken on a violent, wild ride through Ventura and Los Angeles counties as police officers chased the stolen truck.

“I feel the truck moving and I had been in there for two minutes,” Strano recalled. “I thought I had the parking brake off, but then the truck blows through the fence. It was hell.” 

Video of the chase showed the suspect driving erratically as the coffee cart swerved dangerously behind. 

Strano held on for life, grabbing a sink inside the coffee cart as the chase became more chaotic. Eventually, Strano could not hold on any longer.

“He took a turn and the side door was ripped off and I flew out of it when he made that turn,” Strano said.

The coffee cart later overturned as the suspect crashed the pickup truck into the Heartfelt Education through the Arts Center building in North Hollywood.

Strano was left hospitalized with serious injuries after the ordeal. The incident left him with severe pain and limited his mobility. 

Strano said he’s also been suffering from nightmares and flashbacks to the night of the crash.

The suspect, Yanez, was arrested on several felony charges including unlawful driving or taking of a vehicle and receiving stolen property.  He is being held on $20,000 bail.

Strano, however, believes those charges are not enough for the damage caused.

“His charges, not one of them are for my injuries,” Strano said. “My name isn’t in the report. I was just a worker, the assistant, and it kind of got to me.”

For now, Strano is focused on recovering and is undergoing physical therapy. He said he may also consider psychological therapy as well.

A GoFundMe page to help Strano with his medical bills can be found here.