GOSHEN – You might say State Trooper Bryan Whalen of the Monroe barracks has an eagle eye.
He is the trooper who spotted and rescued an injured bald eagle along Route 17 in the Chester area earlier this month.
Well, using that same ‘eagle eye,’ Whalen was chasing a car on Route 17 in Goshen at mid-morning on March 21 when the driver was clocked at 117-mph in a 65-mph zone.
The 18-year-old driver whose name was not released was weaving in and out of traffic. He got off the highway at exit 129 and attempted to hide in the park-and-ride lot. Whalen saw him and as he walked over to the car, the driver sped off again getting back on the highway eastbound to the southbound Thruway.
The trooper terminated the chance for safety reasons when the vehicle reached a speed of 148-mph.
But, ‘eagle eye’ Whalen had spotted the license plate on the car and learned it belonged to a vehicle in New York City. He located the owner and learned he was a relative of the teen who had the speeding vehicle.
Through the use of social media, Whalen saw photos of the suspect standing next to the vehicle with the switched plate.
With the assistance of NYPD, the vehicle and driver were located in Queens.
He was brought back to Orange County where troopers charged him with reckless endangerment, reckless driving, and fleeing an officer in a motor vehicle.
He was issued an appearance ticket to Goshen Town Court and also issued 43 tickets including two speeding tickets.
