Suspect In Wild Speeding Spree Through Vernon And Tolland Arrested

VERNON/TOLLAND, CT — A Massachusetts man has been charged with several crimes on two warrants connected to a high-speed chase that began in Tolland and culminated with a crash in Vernon in November, state police said.

Just after noon Tuesday, state police from the Troop C barracks served the warrants to 33-year-old Edward Contreras Jr., of Brighton, MA. Contreras was located at a business in Vernon, state police said. Contreras was transported to Troop C for processing and was charged in connection with the chase for several crimes:

• Reckless driving
• Engaging police in a pursuit
• Illegal window tints
• Second-degree reckless endangerment

In connection with the crash, Contreras was charged with:

• Evading the scene of a collision
• Violation of traffic control signals
• Interfering with police

Contreras was initially held on two $125,000 bonds, records show. He was arraigned in Rockville Superior Court on Wednesday, and the bonds were reduced to $25,000 each, according to the clerk's office. He failed to post either and remained in custody with a return date of April 9, according to the clerk's office.

The Nov. 27 crash crash occurred at about 9 a.m. and ended a wild scene that covered most of two towns, warrants indicate. The saga began when state police in Massachusetts had alerted colleagues in Connecticut that a speeding, silver Honda Odyssey with Contreras driving had escaped attempts to be pulled over on I-84 and was headed their way.

He was then spotted on the highway in Tolland passing vehicles at speeds that reached 120 mph, according to warrants. Attempts by Connecticut state police to box him in were unsuccessful and Contreras was also able to swerve around stop sticks at Exit 68, according to warrants. He then blew through an at the end of the ramp intersection at 100 mph and managed to get back onto the highway headed west, according to warrants.

State police then saw him exit the highway at Kelly Road in Vernon, blow through a red light at the nearby intersection and head left, up Route 83.

That's where police encountered debris in the road near the Exit 64 eastbound off-ramp intersection with Route 83, according to warrants. Contreras' Odyssey was smashed against the center median and a Subaru with heavy front-end damage was also at the scene.

Contreras, however, was not there and several witnesses said he had run a red light, crashed and then fled the scene on foot.

Surveillance images showed him running away from the crash scene, according to warrants.

In addition to information from Massachusetts state police, Contraras was tracked down via a "most visited places" tab on a phone found in the Odyssey, warrants indicate. State police also discovered several New York City parking tickets in the van, according to warrants.