A 23-year-old Moreno Valley man was arrested and charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon against a peace officer after colliding with a sheriff's patrol car in an effort to evade deputies, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department reported.
In this case, the vehicle is considered a deadly weapon, and according to Deputy Sgt. Chad Craig, two deputies sustained minor injuries in the crash on the morning of May 10.
According to the deputy sergeant, suspect Ramiro Benitez-Jimenez was driving recklessly in a white Nissan coupe in the intersection of Lasselle Avenue at approximately 12:06 a.m. and ignored deputies who tried to pull over his vehicle with their emergency lights on. Instead, the driver of the car did a few more circles in the intersection and fled the area at a high rate of speed, driving recklessly through a residential area, the news release said.
"As deputies attempted to catch up, the driver of the Nissan made a U-turn, turned off the headlights and drove straight toward two patrol vehicles," Craig said in the release. "The deputies were forced to swerve to avoid being struck head-on by the suspect in the Nissan."
Against the red light, Benitez-Jimenez allegedly drove through the intersection of Lasselle Street and Bay Avenue as additional deputies responded to assist. The suspect then hit a marked sheriff’s patrol car as it proceeded lawfully through the intersection on a green light.
The suspect then tried to flee on foot, abandoning his vehicle, and was apprehended in a nearby backyard. Two deputies sustained minor injuries as a result of the collision.
The news release sheds more light on conditions surrounding this incident. According to the department, illegal street racing and sideshows have been on the rise during the pandemic, which has cut down the number of drivers on the roads. These incidents have resulted in the injury and death of numerous bystanders, all of which could have been prevented.