GRAND COUNTY, Colo. — Grand County sheriff's deputies are crediting a Colorado Department of Transportation plow driver with stopping a man accused of leading authorities on a pursuit on a closed road Thursday.
The Grand County Sheriff's Office said in a release that the driver of a silver Jeep Cherokee failed to stop at a closure point on Highway 40 and continued past a sergeant who was stationed there.
The sergeant tried to stop the driver, according to the sheriff's office, but the driver kept going east on Highway 40. At the top of Berthoud Pass, the sergeant ended the pursuit and notified law enforcement agencies in Clear Creek County of the Jeep's last known location and where it was headed.
According to an arrest affidavit, the suspect "admitted to consuming a small shooter" of whiskey as the sergeant was chasing him.
About six minutes after the chase ended, according to the affidavit, Grand County learned that the driver had been involved in a crash on Highway 40, about five miles east of the Berthoud Pass summit. Several law enforcement agencies responded, and Empire Police officers arrested 33-year-old Randy Calvin as he tried to run away, according to the release.
The Grand County Sheriff's Office said Calvin's Jeep had collided with a CDOT plow that had been positioned to shield other cars from the SUV. No one was hurt in the crash.
According to the affidavit, the plow driver told the sergeant that he was westbound on Highway 40 when he saw Calvin coming toward him in the eastbound lane. There was another plow in the lane next to the plow driver, and several other cars were behind them.
The plow driver said that as Calvin tried to pass him, he turned his plow into a snowbank, causing Calvin to hit his plow instead of crashing into the other cars.
Calvin was booked at the Grand County jail on traffic charges and an outstanding felony warrant from the Colorado Department of Corrections for a parole violation, according to the release.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Denver March Snowstorm 2024
MORE WAYS TO GET 9NEWS
Subscribe to our daily 9NEWSLETTER
Download the 9NEWS APP
iTunes: http://on9news.tv/itunes
Google Play: http://on9news.tv/1lWnC5n
ADD THE 9NEWS+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for KUSA.
For both Apple TV and Fire TV, search for "9news" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.