An Aurora man who officials say twice tried to hit Douglas County sheriff’s deputies with his vehicle was arrested late Thursday in Highlands Ranch.
The arrest marked the conclusion of a lengthy and wild police pursuit in which the suspect allegedly drove across homeowners’ yards and twice made deputies jump out of the way to avoid serious injury. It ended when a chasing patrol car spun the suspect’s vehicle near South Broadway and Plaza Drive, and officers then swarmed to take the man into custody.
The suspect was identified as 35-year-old Brian Bilek of Aurora.
The mayhem started shortly after 11 p.m. Thursday when deputies tried to pull over a Ford Explorer speeding northbound on U.S. 85. The Explorer made two right turns before finally stopping after hitting a parked car, the sheriff’s office said Friday in a news release.
When two deputies approached the vehicle, the driver put the car in reverse, forcing the deputies to jump out of the way. The Explorer then took off, driving through yards and smashing into parked cars on its way back to U.S. 85 and then north to C-470, according to the release.
The Explorer sped eastbound on C-470 with deputies in pursuit and exited at Broadway. As deputies tried to set up spiked sticks to stop the Explorer, the vehicle swerved toward the deputies, forcing them to run, the release stated. That is when the chasing patrol officer decided to spin the Explorer to get it to stop.
Bilek was booked into jail on suspicion of vehicular eluding, attempted assault, reckless driving, resisting arrest, criminal mischief and a host of traffic charges.
Staff writer John Ingold can be reached at 720-929-0898 or jingold@denverpost.com.
