The chase began in Holyoke, proceeded north and involved multiple police departments before eventually ending in Deerfield, where 27-year-old Luis Ramon Ocasio was taken into custody and charged.
HOLYOKE -- It was a car chase that began in Holyoke and ended in Deerfield, and along the way featured a suspect who allegedly smashed his Cadillac into police cruisers after fleeing north, then south, then north again.
When the wild ride eventually concluded a couple of miles north of Yankee Candle on Route 5 early Saturday morning, police arrested 27-year-old Luis Ramon Ocasio of 133 Sargeant St., Holyoke, on a long list of charges, including two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and operating under the influence of alcohol.
The chase began in Holyoke around 3:10 a.m., when city police began pursuing a car with its headlights off as it drove north on Route 5.
"He failed to stop," Holyoke Police Sgt. Stephen Loftus said of Ocasio, who continued north on Route 5 into Easthampton.
Police from Easthampton and Northampton also gave chase as Ocasio proceeded north through those cities. State police from Northampton then joined the pursuit, which ended in Deerfield a good 40 minutes after it began.
"His car really just stopped working," Loftus said. "It was slow after he hit the stop sticks."
Police placed the tire-puncturing devices at various points along the chase route, including in Easthampton and Deerfield. The first strip of spikes popped two of Ocasio's tires in Easthampton, prompting him to turn around and head back south on Route 5 for a short distance.
That's when Ocasio crashed into police cruisers from Holyoke and Easthampton near the Delaney House, Loftus said. After that, Ocasio headed north again on Route 5 until he reached Interstate 91 north in Northampton and merged onto the highway.
Ocasio exited I-91 in Hatfield and proceeded north on Route 5 at a relatively slow speed with only two good tires. He then ran over another set of stop sticks in Deerfield, reducing his car to one good tire, Loftus said.
A short while later, police took Ocasio into custody without incident after he finally stopped north of Yankee Candle.
"He said he was sorry," Loftus said.
In addition to the drunken-driving charge and two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (a motor vehicle), Ocasio will be arraigned Monday in Holyoke District Court on single counts of failure to stop for police, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, negligent operation to endanger, driving with the headlights turned off, leaving the scene of an accident with property damage, and kidnapping.
The kidnapping charge was triggered because Ocasio had a female passenger with him who wanted to get out of the vehicle, but Ocasio wouldn't let her go, according to Loftus.
Loftus said Ocasio put motorists and pursuing officers at risk by driving drunk with his headlights off. Officers didn't know what to expect when they finally confronted Ocasio, Loftus said.
"We didn't know if he's armed or dangerous," the sergeant said.
Loftus said several cruisers participated in the pursuit, which, other than a pair of damaged cruisers, didn't result in any serious injuries.