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PD: Man with warrant mistakenly thinks officers were after him, crashes into semi

The crash happened near I-70 and Peoria in northeast Denver.
Credit: 9NEWS
A man broke his femur after he was ejecting from his car when it crashed into a semi-truck Wednesday evening.

DENVER — A man is expected to survive after he was ejected from his vehicle when he plowed into a semi-truck head-on Wednesday evening. 

The crash happened on Peoria Street north of Interstate 70, and was caused by the victim mistakenly believing that officers behind him with their lights and sirens flashing were after him, according to Denver Police Department (DPD) spokesperson Jay Casillas.

Police were actually on their way to a call regarding a shooting that turned out to be unfounded, Casillas said. Nevertheless, Casillas said the driver who plowed into the semi-truck had a warrant for his arrest, and sped up and lost control near 51st Avenue.

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Casillas said the driver kept speeding up even when officers tried to move over to the side to make it clear they weren’t following him.

The vehicle later went into the southbound lanes of Peoria and crashed into the semi, which was waiting to make a turn. 

The driver was ejected and suffered a broken femur, but is expected to survive. No other injuries were reported during the incident. 

Casillas could not identify the driver or say what warrant he was wanted on.

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