HAWTHORNE – A Westchester County police officer sustained injuries while on the Hutchinson River Parkway, Monday, when a motorist drove off at high speed as the officer was attempting to take him into custody.
The officer was attempting to remove the driver of a vehicle about 11:30 a.m. and was leaning inside the car when it sped off. The officer was able to climb inside to avoid being dragged and he struggled with the suspect as the vehicle reached speeds of up to 60 mph.
The driver’s front door remained open during the incident. The driver swerved across both lanes of the highway and on to the shoulder, accelerating and then braking hard, in an apparent effort to throw the officer from the car, investigators said.
The struggle continued for three-quarters of a mile, when the officer was able to bring the car to a halt. The suspect vehicle was then boxed in by a county police patrol car as the driver attempted to take off again.
“The actions of this driver put our officer in grave danger,” Commissioner Thomas Gleason said. “It is fortunate that he was not seriously injured or killed.”
The suspect’s identity is still being verified and will be released in the morning. He is believed to be a Massachusetts man in his 20s. Several felony charges are pending, including attempted murder of a police officer, assault and criminal possession of a controlled substance.
The incident began when the officer pulled over the Honda for a traffic violation on the northbound Hutch at North Street in New Rochelle. After determining that the driver did not have a valid license, the officer asked the man to step out of the car. The driver initially complied but then jumped back into the Honda. The officer attempted to prevent him from fleeing.
The county officer, whose name was not released, was taken to Phelps Memorial Hospital in Sleepy Hollow with an injury to one of his hands and arm. He was treated and released. The suspect was taken to the Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, where he was also treated and released.
Following the incident, the car was impounded and towed back to county police headquarters in Hawthorne where 9,000 glassine envelopes of heroin were discovered inside the vehicle.
