A habitual traffic offender led troopers on a chase Friday morning in Jefferson County that ended when he crashed into a tree and tried to run before being captured.
The incident started about 6 a.m. on Colorado 119, near Black Hawk, when a silver Ford Escape was stopped for driving with fake license plates, according to the Colorado State Patrol.
The driver of the Escape, Sonia Zamudio, 39, of Commerce City, was arrested for driving while her license was under restraint, displaying fictitious plates and having no proof of insurance, the State Patrol said.
As Zamudio was placed into custody to be taken from the scene, a passenger in the Escape, Harles Apodaca, 46, of Denver, was offered a courtesy ride to Black Hawk.
Apodaca was told to wait for a Gilpin County sheriff’s deputy but he instead drove the Escape away after the trooper left with Zamudio.
The Escape was spotted about 7:25 a.m. near U.S. 6. Apodaca refused to stop and fled state troopers. The Escape, with troopers in pursuit, sped to Lakewood, where it headed north on Simms Street and crashed into a tree at West 20th Avenue, the State Patrol said.
Apodaca fled but was caught a short time later in the 2000 block of Routt Street.
Kieran Nicholson, The Denver Post
