WESTFIELD – Although a Holyoke woman who caused a three-car crash when she fled from police was ultimately arrested, a man who may have been with her escaped after confusing and intimidating two juvenile boys who live in the area.
The incident began Friday evening when Officer Michael Gibbons ran a routine check on a vehicle seen operating on Main Street which revealed that the registration plates on the car had been reported to be stolen.
Gibbons activated his cruiser’s lights and stopped the car on Main Street but, while Gibbons was requesting an additional officer, the car suddenly accelerated and fled down George Street.
Gibbons gave chase and reports that the operator of the fleeing car extinguished the vehicle’s headlights before turning left on to Meadow Street at a speed Gibbons estimated to be about 50 mph.
On Meadow Street, Gibbons reports, the fleeing Hyundai Sonata struck a westbound BMW sedan which, in turn, collided with an eastbound Jeep.
The fugitive continued a short distance before abandoning the car and fleeing on foot to Williams Street where she was apprehended in a backyard by Officer Richard Mazza.
Daisha Serrano, 19, of no fixed address in Holyoke, was arrested for reckless operation of a motor vehicle, leaving the scene of a personal injury accident, failure to stop for police, operating a motor vehicle without illuminated headlights, speeding, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, operating an unregistered motor vehicle, receiving stolen property valued less than $250 and for a number plate violation to conceal identification.
Gibbons found that the fleeing woman had abandoned a Chihuahua dog in the car and animal control officer Kerri Francis responded to transport the dog to the municipal animal shelter.
At the accident site, an occupant of the crashed BMW was trapped and firefighters responded to extricate the victim who was then transported to Baystate Medical Center where she was treated and subsequently released.
Unbeknown to the officers at the scene, at about the same time a man had been admitted to a Williams Street apartment by a 12-year-old boy.
Hours later, a caller told an emergency dispatcher that his brother had answered the door to their apartment and found a Hispanic male who said that he had been in an accident and that he was afraid of going to jail because he was underage.
Det. Brian Freeman reports that the two brothers, who are recent immigrants who speak limited English, didn’t understand what was happening and allowed him entry. The boys said that the suspect had told them that police were chasing him and he needed a change of clothing and the use of a phone.
Freeman reports that the boys were scared and gave him a shirt, sweatpants and a pair of shoes but did not expect him to leave with the clothing. The older brother told Freeman the phone numbers the man called. The man subsequently left the apartment and entered a SUV which drove away toward Meadow Street.
Freeman reports that the boys did not intend to help the suspect avoid arrest but had been frightened and did what they could to stay safe.
Capt. Michael McCabe said later that there is no direct evidence connecting the suspect with Serrano but police are working on the assumption that he had been in her car during the incident.
Serrano appeared in Westfield District Court on Monday where she was released on $1,000 personal surety pending a Jan. 8 hearing.
