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A Silver Lake man was arrested Friday after fleeing officers and crashing into two vehicles, according to an Indiana State Police news release provided today.
At approximately 4:27 p.m. Friday, Aug. 7, ISP Trooper Austin Slone was patrolling near the intersection of U.S. 30 and Ind. 15 when he observed two white Chrysler 300s commit several moving violations. Slone positioned behind both vehicles and activated his emergency lights and siren to conduct a traffic stop.
Immediately after emergency lights were activated, the rear Chrysler 300 accelerated abruptly, made unsafe lane changes that cut off other motorists and entered the center turn lane, the release states. After observing these violations, Slone then initiated a pursuit of that vehicle.
The Chrysler 300 continued southbound on Ind. 15, traveling over 100 miles per hour in the center turn lane. Due to increasing traffic congestion and concerns for public safety, Slone terminated the pursuit.
Moments later, Slone saw white smoke near the intersection of Detroit and Fort Wayne streets. Upon arriving at the scene, he found that the Chrysler 300 had collided with a Ford F-150 and a Cadillac SUV, both of which were stopped in the southbound lanes. Despite the crash, the Chrysler 300’s driver continued attempting to accelerate through the Ford F-150 but was unable to flee.
After realizing escape was no longer possible, the female passenger exited the vehicle and surrendered immediately, according to the release. As Slone and a Warsaw Police Department officer initiated a felony stop, the driver exited, refused verbal commands and reached back into the vehicle before ultimately fleeing on foot. Multiple WPD officers pursued and took the suspect into custody without further incident.
The driver was identified as David Gabriel Rodriguez Jr., 21, of Silver Lake.
The female passenger was transported to Lutheran Kosciusko Hospital for treatment of injuries suffered during the crash.
Rodriguez Jr. was eventually arrested and transported to the Kosciusko County Jail and booked at 6:06 p.m. Friday. His preliminary bond was set at $10,000.
The charges submitted against Rodriguez Jr. included resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, a level 6 felony; resisting law enforcement, a class A misdemeanor; reckless driving with injury, a class A misdemeanor; leaving the scene of a crash with injury, a class A misdemeanor; leaving the scene of a crash property damage, a class B misdemeanor; speed contest, a class B misdemeanor; and operating a motor vehicle with no financial responsibility prior, a class C misdemeanor.
The ISP were assisted by the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department, Warsaw Police Department, Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory and Lutheran EMS.
