LUDLOW, Mass. — Two Connecticut men were arrested after a 30-mile car chase that spanned a large section of Western Massachusetts on Tuesday.
Massachusetts State Police said an officer on I-84 Westbound in Sturbridge observed an Acura without a front license plate. He attempted to catch up to the car when he saw the driver making erratic lane changes and cutting off other cars near Exit 3.
The car then made an illegal U-turn and re-entered the highway heading east. The driver got onto the Massachusetts Turnpike. At one point, the trooper saw the driver and front-seat passenger trade places in the moving vehicle.
The Air 5 helicopter of the Massachusetts State Police Air Wing got sights on the car as troopers terminated the chase on the ground below and State Police followed in the air, according to police.
The suspects continued to drive dangerously through the town. At one point, they stopped the car and exited with their hands in the air and laid down on the ground as officers arrived on the scene to make the arrest.
Oscar Santiago, 25, of Hartford, was charged with:
- Reckless Operation of a Motor Vehicle;
- Leaving the Scene of a Property Damage Crash;
- Failure to Stop for Police;
- Negligent Operation of a Motor Vehicle;
- Attaching Plates Wrong Motor Vehicle Plates;
- Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle;
- Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle;
- Speeding;
- Breakdown Lane Violation;
- Marked Lanes Violation;
- Fail to Signal;
- License Plate Violation;
- Improper Turn; and
- Passing Violation.
Omar Santiago, 25, of New Britain, was charged with:
- Reckless Operation of a Motor Vehicle;
- Leaving the Scene of a Property Damage Crash;
- Failure to Stop for Police;
- Negligent Operation of a Motor Vehicle;
- Attaching Plates Wrong Motor Vehicle Plates;
- Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle;
- Speeding;
- Breakdown Lane Violation;
- Marked Lanes Violation;
- Fail to Signal;
- License Plate Violation;
- Improper Turn; and
- Passing Violation
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