CLEVELAND — New dash camera footage sheds new light on a police chase that ended with a crash two weeks ago in Cleveland.
At approximately 8:20 p.m. back on Nov. 9, officials say Parma police were involved in a pursuit of a suspect. The suspect continued to flee from Parma into Cleveland.
Police say they saw a 1999 Honda Civic with multiple equipment violations driving northbound on Pearl Road. Officers attempted to initiate a traffic stop when the driver pulled into McDonald's and circled the building before reaching the driveway and exiting back onto Pearl Road.
The officer then pursued the vehicle northbound into Cleveland to State Road where the Honda struck a 2003 Buick Century at the intersection of Pearl Road and Altoona Road.
Dashcam footage released this week by the Parma Police Department shows the moments leading up to the incident.
The driver of the Honda fled on foot northbound onto Pearl Road, refusing to listen to the officer's commands to stop. Police eventually were able to arrest 33-year-old Ray Lopez when he tripped onto the ground, and he told them he fled because of an active warrant for his arrest.
Cleveland firefighters had to use the jaws of life to rescue the victim out of their vehicle after the crash. Lopez, a 40-year-old female passenger, and the 70-year-old driver of the vehicle that was struck were all transported to MetroHealth Medical Center.
This isn't the first time a Parma police pursuit has ended in a violent crash. 3News previously obtained this video from an Aug. 26 chase which ended in a fatal wrong-way collision on a Cleveland highway. Footage shows police pursing the vehicle before it turned into oncoming traffic and hit another car.
Just days before that, Parma officers also chase a vehicle into Cleveland, and that also resulted in a fatal crash in Old Brooklyn.
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