By Marian Gail Brown,
Connecticut Post
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — A Milford man who crashed his car in Southington after leading State Police from three barracks and a police helicopter on a high-speed, 60-mile chase that covered several of Connecticut’s most congested highways Saturday will appear at Superior Court in Milford Monday.
State police say Michael Tanych, 36, of Weeping Willow Lane in Milford, ignored a state trooper’s order to pull over on Interstate 95 near exit 39A in Milford. He is being held in police custody in lieu of a $20,000 bond on charges of driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, engaging a police pursuit and interfering with police.
“We received a 911 call from a motorist that someone in another car was turning around and possibly assaulting someone in the backseat,” Sgt. William Kittle, a spokesman for state police at Troop G in Bridgeport said. The motorist provided a description of Tanych’s car, a 1996 Chevy Corsica and its location, Kittle said, adding that a trooper pulled up behind Tanych with his lights and sirens flashing.
Tanych allegedly bolted, reaching 100 mph as he passed traffic on Interstate 95 northbound to Interstate 91 through New Haven onto Interstate 691 in Meriden, heading west to Interstate 84 in Southington, where he crashed near exit 30. The chase started at 11 a.m. Saturday and lasted for 43 minutes.
“Thankfully, no other vehicles were struck,” Kittle said, adding that despite numerous orders from state troopers to pull over Tanych “continued to be elusive.” As part of their pursuit, state police laid some rubber strips with spikes along portions of some of the interstates, designed to flatten the suspect’s tires. “We have to be very careful,” Kittle said, “to make sure we don’t get these stop strips under another vehicle.”
A state police helicopter, Trooper I, was pursuing the Chevy Corsica as state troopers closed in on the vehicle in Southington. According to State Police at Troop G and Troop I in Bethany, Tanych attempted to make a U-turn on Interstate 84 and double back in the opposite direction when he struck a guardrail and bottomed out in the median. Troop H in Hartford also was involved in the chase.
Tanych was the only occupant in the Corsica, Kittle said, adding that the 911 caller was mistaken that someone was being attacked in the car.
Copyright 2007 Connecticut Post