NYC Police Chase With Stolen Box Truck Damages 25 Cars, Hurts Cops

NEW YORK CITY — The driver of a stolen box truck led NYPD cops on a calamitous, 5-mile chase that left 25 cars damaged and multiple officers injured, police said.

Michael Rompa, 48, faces numerous charges — including assault and reckless endangerment — after his arrest Thursday at the end of a trail of destruction through Staten Island, authorities said.

At one point, Rompa plowed into three police cruisers and dragged one of them as many as 40 feet, NYPD officials said.

The chase began about 5:50 p.m. when officers saw a box truck reported stolen at Bishop Street and Cranford Avenue near the Willowbrook Parkway, police said.

Cops tried to stop the truck, only for the driver to reverse into three police vehicles, authorities said. The truck became entangled with one police car and dragged it between 30 and 40 feet, officials said.

The box truck driver then sped off recklessly and struck about 25 cars over the course of roughly 5 miles until police stopped and arrested him at Van Duzer and Beach streets, authorities said.

Multiple cops were treated for injuries, police told Patch.