An escapee from a halfway house who allegedly stole an SUV and assaulted a woman as he drove in the mountains was arrested today after a 105-mph chase.
Griffith Jones, 37, of Denver is being held in the Chaffee County Jail on suspicion of assault and false imprisonment, among other charges, according to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office.
Jones allegedly assaulted a 30-year-old Denver woman, hitting her several times after an argument, as the pair drove near Salida.
The suspect also held the woman against her will in the 1996 Chevrolet Suburban, the Sheriff’s Office said in a media release.
At about 7 a.m., Jones dropped off the victim at Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center in Salida, and sheriff’s deputies were called to the hospital, the release said.
Jones fled the hospital in the SUV, which was spotted by a deputy on U.S. 285. The deputy pulled over the Chevy, but the driver sped off.
Buena Vista police and the Colorado State Patrol joined the pursuit, which reached speeds of 105 mph, the Sheriff’s Office said.
A Park County Sheriff’s deputy, out in front of the pursuit, laid a “spike strip,” a device used to deflate tires, on the highway, and the SUV was forced to a stop.
Jones then ran away, but officers chased him down and arrested him.
The Chevy was reported stolen in Denver on Monday.
Jones is an escapee from a Department of Corrections halfway house, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
