A Portland police pursuit of a stolen truck ended Monday with the truck crashing off Southwest Barbur Boulevard and three people running into the neighborhood before they were caught, police said.

The white 2010 Chevrolet Silverado pickup had been reported stolen out of the Raleigh Hills neighborhood the night before and was spotted Monday morning in downtown Portland, Sgt. James Crooker said.

The truck's owner had left a shotgun in the truck, heightening police concerns, Crooker said.

An officer spotted the stolen truck at Southwest Third Avenue and Jefferson Street at 9:24 a.m. after receiving an alert through the LoJack stolen car recovery system, which recognized a silent radio transceiver that had been installed in the truck.

Central Precinct officers noticed the truck traveling 70 to 80 mph south on Naito Parkway. Police chased the truck southbound on Barbur Boulevard when the pickup tried to skirt onto a side street but failed to make a sharp turn and crashed down an embankment. It got stck on a stairwell that leads down to the A-Boy store property off Barbur Boulevard.

Three people in the truck immediately scattered into the nearby neighborhood.

Eight police cars responded, along with a Portland fire truck and an ambulance.

Three people were taken into custody, Crooker said.

One suspect, arrested at gunpoint on Southwest Terwilliger Boulevard, was assessed by fire medical workers at the scene after he was handcuffed and placed in the back of a patrol car.

Police recovered the shotgun left in the stolen truck, Crooker said.

A tow truck driver later Monday was trying to figure out how to pull the truck out of the area. Stickers on the truck's back window read "Native Oregonian'' and "Locals Only.''

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian