TOWN OF NASSAU – A man, who was a
passenger in a stolen 2012 Ford Escape that was spotted in Columbia County,
was killed when the driver crashed it into an embankment on Route 66 in
the Town of Nassau in Rensselaer County Thursday morning.
A Columbia County Sheriff’s deputy attempted to stop the vehicle
after it was spotted at a truck stop on Route 22 in Canaan at around 2
a.m.
The deputy followed the vehicle northbound on Route 22 at a high rate
of speed and a state trooper joined the chase when it turned onto Route
20 in the Town of New Lebanon.
The suspect SUV continued to speed for about eight miles when officers
lost sight and discontinued the chase, but 11 minutes later, the vehicle
was found crashed into the embankment.
The passenger, Joshua Castillo Rivera, 26, of the Bronx, was transported
to Albany Medical Center where he died.
The driver and a second passenger were treated at the hospital for their
injuries.
Charges are pending against the driver, police said.
