Bumperless Pickup Leads State Police To Driver Who Fled February Sedan Crash On Route 32

STAFFORD, CT — A bumperless pickup helped solve the mystery of what happened to the driver of a Nissan sedan who fled a February crash in Stafford on foot, warrants show.

And after the crash and two pursuits a month later, the driver was arrested on June 2, state police said. The 27-year-old woman, whose listed address is in Farmington, was charged via a warrant with engaging police in a pursuit, failure to display plates and failure to obey a stop sign.

On a separate warrant, she was charged with driving an unregistered vehicle, driving without the proper insurance, evading responsibility, a lane violation and the use of drug paraphernalia.

The saga dates back to Feb. 7, when a police dog track could not even locate the driver of a Nissan Altima that crashed into a wooded area off Route 32 and disappeared, according to warrants.

But it also involves an "older" Chevrolet S-10 pickup with no rear bumper state police encountered on March 11. That day, a sate trooper noticed the truck heading west on Route 190 in Stafford with no decipherable rear plate and began tailing it, according to warrants.

The driver sped away from the state police cruiser and the truck was last seen turning onto Route 32 south, according to warrants.

A week later — on March 18 — another state trooper on patrol on the westbound side of Interstate 84 saw the bumperless pickup turn onto the highway at Exit 70, warrants show. While following the pickup, the trooper was able to make out the number of the plate, which was assigned to the Nissan involved in the February crash, according to warrants.

State police were able to pull the pickup over and the driver at first said she had just acquired it, though the presence of drug paraphernalia and personal belonging that seemed to be there for sometime inside the vehicle dispelled that claim, warrants show.

She eventually admitted to being invilved in the February crash and state police then applied for an arrest warrant.