Driver hits 100 mph in chase starting on Las Vegas Blvd.

By Cara McCoy

Thursday, Jan. 29, 2009 | 6:29 p.m.

A California man wanted in connection with several burglaries was arrested Wednesday night after a chase began on Las Vegas Boulevard and ended after the vehicle's engine blew, the Newport Beach (Calif.) Police Department said.

Richard Abbott, 45, was driving a 2007 Ford Mustang Shelby convertible on Las Vegas Boulevard at a high rate of speed when the chase began, police said. A Metropolitan Police helicopter trailed Abbott after he entered the highway, where he reached speeds of more than 100 mph and continued until the car's engine blew out, authorities said.

Abbott surrendered after pulling his vehicle to the side of the road.

It wasn't immediately clear Thursday evening where the chase began on Las Vegas Boulevard and where it came to an end.

Police have identified Abbott as a the main suspect in a string of high-end burglaries in residential areas of Newport Beach and Palm Springs, Calif. The burglaries have likely been committed by the same person, police said.

Police said the burglar targets affluent neighborhoods, where he will enter a home through a skylight or by breaking a window, then will focus on areas of the house that likely contain jewelry, cash or firearms. He also has broken into the home's safe or, if he can't break into it, will take the safe with him when he exits.

Abbott is in the Clark County Detention Center awaiting extradition.