Suspect Led Officers Down Residential Streets
HOLLISTER—Hollister Police Department arrested a female driver after she led them on a vehicle pursuit through the streets of Hollister as she tried to evade officers. They arrested 22-year-old Hollister resident Patricia Candelaria Caudillo and charged her with felony evading.
Early Sunday morning, April 6 at around 1:45 a.m., Hollister Police Officer Rudy Rodriguez was on patrol when he witnessed a vehicle blow the stop sign near the intersection of East Street and Hawkins Street. Officer Rodriguez attempted to pull the car over but the driver ignored his red lights.
Instead of stopping, the driver, identified as Patricia Caudillo, made a series of turns and maneuvers in an attempt to avoid Officer Rodriguez. She narrowly missed several parked vehicles along the residential streets that she led the officer down.
“At times the vehicle pursuit reached speeds of up to 90 miles per hour.” Hollister Police Captain Carlos Reynoso wrote in a press release.
Once Caudillo led Officer Rodriguez onto SR 25 and Park Street she made a turn and headed northbound and hit the accelerator, reaching speeds up to 90 MPH.
A complete stop at this sign would have saved everyone a lot of trouble.
By that time, Officer Rodriguez had radioed for backup as the pursuit was fast becoming a danger to the public. Deputies from the San Benito County Sheriff joined the pursuit, as well as other officers from the Hollister Police Department.
The vehicle finally came to a stop just north of Santa Ana Road. Caudillo was arrested and transported and booked into San Benito County Jail. She faces charges of Felony Evading Police with disregard to the public, and driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Her eagerness to escape arrest was likely due to her other two recent DUI’s, on November 6 and February 6.
