A Connecticut man was arrested on DUI and reckless driving charges after crashing his vehicle on Route 2 following a pursuit on Interstate 84 in East Hartford.
A trooper assigned to Troop H in Hartford reportedly observed a single-vehicle collision involving a red Infiniti sedan in the area of the Exit 58 on-ramp to I-84 West in East Hartford around 9:42 p.m. on Monday, according to the Connecticut State Police.
As nearby troopers responded to the scene, both troopers saw the vehicle stopped across the right lane and right center lane of I-84 west at the end of the Exit 58 on-ramp, state police said. The vehicle had heavy damage to the front end and passenger side, a deflated right front tire and thick smoke coming from underneath the hood, according to police.
Troopers were unable to determine how many people were in the vehicle due to its heavily tinted windows, state police said. As they approached the vehicle, they saw the driver allegedly attempting to move the vehicle forward and backward and noted that the vehicle did not have any registration plates displayed, according to state police.
As soon as the driver was able to maneuver the vehicle in the right direction, the car took off, state police said. Troopers returned to their cruisers and activated their emergency lights and sirens, signaling the driver to stop. Troopers said they observed the driver swerving across the lanes at approximately 50 mph as the vehicle continued to smoke, according to state police.
The driver then reportedly cut across the lanes of I-84 West onto the Exit 55 ramp to Route 2 East as troopers attempted, and failed, to box the vehicle in, state police said. The driver then exited Route 2 East at Exit 5 and struck a guardrail and a concrete divider on the exit ramp became completely disabled, according to state police.
Troopers got out of their cruisers and gave verbal commands for the occupants to get out of the vehicle with their hands in the air, state police said. According to state police, a man exited from the passenger side and was ordered to the ground where he was placed in handcuffs.
Troopers cleared the vehicle and determined there were no other occupants, state police said. It was later determined the car was not registered or insured.
The driver was identified as 27-year-old Daniel Vazquez of East Hartford. During the investigation, Vazquez was allegedly showing signs of impairment, according to state police. Troopers administered standardized field sobriety testing which Vazquez allegedly failed, state police said.
Vazquez was arrested and transported to Troop H where he was processed on charges of operating/parking an unregistered motor vehicle, failure to display license plates, illegal operation of a motor vehicle without minimum insurance, reckless driving, disobeying the signal of an officer, engaging police in pursuit, illegal operation of a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol/drugs, failure to maintain proper lane on limited access highway, interfering with an officer/resisting and second-degree reckless endangerment.
Vazquez was later released from custody on a $10,000 bond and is scheduled to appear at Manchester Superior Court on Jan. 2, 2025.
