By Lisa Redmond and Robert Mills
Lowell Sun
LOWELL, Mass. — City police are investigating who tampered with the security system in a police cruiser after a 20-year-old Lowell man stole the vehicle early Saturday morning and led police on a chase before crashing into several parked cars.
Police say that while Lowell Police Officer Soben Buth was responding, along with other officers, to a loud party at 1990 Middlesex St. about 2 a.m., he heard a screeching sound.
When he looked to see what it was, he spotted someone speeding off in his cruiser.
Police say Ricky Sin, 20, of 452 Fletcher St., Lowell, took the cruiser from the street, where it had been left running as Buth responded to the noise complaint.
Lavallee said it is not unusual for an officer to leave a cruiser running while responding to a call so that the cruiser’s lights and electronics don’t drain the battery.
All front-line city police cruisers have a “fail-safe” system that prevents anyone but the officer from driving off with the cruiser, though.
“In this case, the officer left the car unattended and running and the fail-safe system failed,” Lavallee said.
Sin led police on a high-speed, two-mile chase at speeds of up to 90 mph down Middlesex Street and onto Wilder Street, running through a stop sign, according to court documents. Sin then hit a curb, lost control of the cruiser and hit several parked cars before coming to a stop.
“The cruiser was totalled and several motor vehicles were smashed as well,” Lavallee said. “Although there were no injuries that night, the property damage was very significant.”
Police said Sin tried to flee on foot after crashing, but the door was jammed, trapping him in the cruiser. Firefighters used hydraulic cutters to extricate him from the cruiser.
Sin pleaded innocent in Lowell District Court yesterday to charges of larceny of a motor vehicle, failure to stop for police, resisting arrest, unlicensed operation of motor vehicle, failure to yield, speeding and marked-lanes violation.
While prosecutors sought $250 cash bail, Judge Lynn Rooney set Sin’s bail at $1,000. However, Sin’s probation was revoked on a 2008 case on charges of receiving a stolen motor vehicle and carrying a dangerous weapon.
Sin’s next court date is Dec. 11 for a pretrial conference.
Lavallee said the cruiser was inspected the following morning, and that based on a preliminary investigation, it appears someone had tampered with the cruiser’s security system, rendering it inoperable.
Police Superintendent Kenneth Lavallee said police do not believe Sin tampered with the system before driving off.
“I doubt he even knew it was in place,” Lavallee said.
Lavallee also said he does not believe Buth had disabled the system. He said the security systems are in place to protect both officers and the public.
“This was a very, very serious matter,” Lavallee said. “It will be looked into very thoroughly.”
Copyright 2009 Lowell Sun