FRESNO – Officers on the ground, assisted by a police helicopter, chased a man suspected of drunk driving through Roeding Park early Saturday morning before spike strips derailed him.
A Fresno County sheriff’s deputy was trying to pull over 37-year-old Alex Lopez around 1 a.m. Saturday on suspicion of drunk driving. Officers in the Fresno police helicopter spotted the suspect and began assisting in the chase, according to authorities.
Lopez drove his truck into Roeding Park, which was closed, going over a curb and through the grass to get past the gate at Olive Avenue. He turned off his truck lights in order to evade the helicopter, but ground units with the California Highway Patrol, sheriff’s office and Fresno police department were able to keep his truck in sight under the helicopter’s light, authorities said.
Lopez managed to weave his way through the park for 10 minutes before driving over spike strips laid down by the CHP at the Olive Avenue gate exit. Lopez abandoned his truck, ran through an alley, and jumped into a backyard, where he was apprehended by officers, authorities said.
Read More:
Fresno Bee: Fresno man leads helicopter cops on chase
