Man Attempts to Run Over Melbourne Police Officers
By Space Coast Daily // November 30, 2013
SUSPECT APPREHENDED NEAR WUESTHOFF HOSPITAL
BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA — Melbourne and Rockledge Police Departments combined efforts to apprehend a suspect who twice attempted to run over a Melbourne Police officer.
According to Sgt. Brian Hart of Melbourne Police Department, at 3:37 a.m. on Saturday Melbourne Police observed a vehicle on US1 near Old Colonial Way traveling southbound at 20 MPH over the posted speed limit. The officer attempted to stop the vehicle as it pulled into the parking lot of the Kangaroo Express at the corner of Parkway Dr and US1.
According to Hart, as the vehicle pulled into the parking lot, the driver jumped into the backseat of the car, forcing the front seat passenger to move into the driver seat and stop the vehicle before it struck the building. When the officer made contact with the suspect in the back seat, the suspect refused to cooperate with the officers instructions and a physical altercation ensued where the suspect pushed the officer and fled from the vehicle.
The officer engaged in a foot pursuit with the suspect who eventually made it back to the vehicle. The suspect then attempted to push the passenger of the vehicle out, in an attempt to steal the car. The suspect continued yelling at the passenger, who was now sitting in the driver seat, to run the officer over, but he refused. The suspect was eventually able to get the vehicle into reverse and push on the gas. This caused the officer to have to jump out of the way of the moving vehicle. When the suspect drove in reverse,he struck the front of a Melbourne Police Vehicle. The suspect was finally successful in pushing the passenger out of the vehicle.
The suspect drove the vehicle around the building into a dead end. When the suspect turned around, he was pointed directly at the officer as he was securing detaining the passenger for investigation. The suspect willfully and intentionally pushed on the gas, accelerating directly at the officer. The officer drew his firearm in fear for the safety of the passenger and himself. The suspect swerved at the last minute, narrowly missing a police vehicle and a delivery truck. The suspect then drove out to US1 traveling northbound at a high rate of speed.
Officers immediately engaged in a vehicle pursuit with the suspect. The suspect led officers in a vehicle pursuit northbound on US1 into the City of Rockledge. Deputies from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office were able to deploy a tire deflation device into the roadway and strike two of the suspect’s tires. With two tires rapidly losing air, the suspect jumped out of the vehicle as it continued northbound, unoccupied. The vehicle eventually came to a rest after jumping a curb and striking a crosswalk signal. The suspect ran into the parking lot of the Wuesthoff Hospital located at 110 Longwood Av, Rockledge, Florida. After a short foot pursuit, the suspect was caught and arrested by Melbourne Police Officers.
A check of the suspect’s driver’s license and criminal history shows the suspect’s license was suspended over 20 times, with one suspension for a previous fleeing and eluding charge. The suspect is also currently on probation for fleeing and eluding.
