An Irvington NJ man was sentenced to 18 years in New Jersey State Prison for leading police on a high-speech chase on Routes 1&9 last year.
According to authorities, Elizabeth NJ police officers attempted to pull over the 34-year-old defendant on January 20, 2013.
The defendant, who was driving a Dodge Charger, refused to pull over and instead continued to drive on the road. He eventually struck a metal guardrail, which caused his car to spin around.
At that point, the police officers got out of their patrol vehicle and approached the defendant. However, he sped the vehicle toward one of the officers and then drove away. Pieces of the defendant’s damaged vehicle were falling off as he fled the scene.
The defendant finally stopped when his vehicle broke down on an exit ramp near Frontage Road in Newark. He then ditched the vehicle and walked away on foot.
An investigation immediately followed the incident, with several law enforcement agencies coming together to identify and capture the suspect.
Police spotted the suspect entering a warehouse at Newark Liberty International Airport less than an hour after the car chase.
The suspect was placed under arrest and charged with several offenses, including second degree eluding and third degree resisting arrest. The suspect admitted to being intoxicated at the time of the incident; however, he was not charged with drunk driving.
The suspect was convicted of the charges last month in Essex County Superior Court. Due to the severity of the offenses and the dangers posed by his conduct, he was sentenced to 18 years in NJ State Prison.
To learn more about this case, check out the NJ.com article entitled “Irvington Man Gets 18 Years in Prison for Leading Elizabeth Police on Chase.”
