A motorist who jumped out of a car Monday afternoon on Interstate 70 and ran from authorities, forcing a two-hour shutdown of the highway near Lookout Mountain, was identified today by the Colorado State Patrol.
Manual Serrano Jr., 41, of Denver, is being held in Jefferson County Jail on suspicion of reckless driving, eluding police and being a felony habitual traffic offender, among other possible counts, the State Patrol said in a press release.
On Monday at about 2:20 p.m., a trooper tried to pull over a driver on I-70 about one mile east of the Lookout Mountain exit, the State Patrol said.
The vehicle pulled to the far left side of the highway and hit cones in a construction zone, according to the patrol. The driver stopped, bolted from the vehicle and ran down a steep embankment.
The suspect later was caught by authorities and identified by the State Patrol as Serrano.
Serrano was speeding and driving aggressively in a construction zone while under the influence of alcohol, the patrol said.
Eastbound lanes of the highway were closed for about two hours and traffic was detoured onto U.S. 40 as police searched for Serrano.
No one was injured in the incident.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
