A BART police officer was injured late Sunday night after his patrol car was smashed by a car thief fleeing from authorities in a stolen vehicle.

The accident occurred just before midnight in Hayward, when the suspect, being chased by deputies from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, ran a red light and collided with the BART officer’s vehicle.

The BART officer, a 38-year-old man whose identity has not been released, was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries in the accident.

Just moments before the crash, the suspect had been stopped by sheriff county deputies for driving a stolen vehicle. When one of the deputies approached his vehicle, the suspect, a 23-year-old man, attempted to ram the officer before speeding off from the scene.

The injured BART police officer injured in the accident was not involved in the ensuing chase.

wreisman@sfexaminer.com