Warren police officer injured after suspect rams his vehicle during pursuit
By: Warren police say an officer was injured on Saturday afternoon after a suspect rammed his police vehicle during a pursuit.
Police say on August 20 around 4 p.m., officers were called to the area of 21432 MacArthur on reports of a driver in a blue Jeep possible having a medical emergency. When officers reached the driver, police say it appeared that he was under the influence of narcotics and refused to get out of the Jeep. Shortly after, he took off through neighborhood streets to 8 Mile with officers in pursuit. During the chase, video shows the suspect ram the passenger side of the police SUV, damaging both vehicles.
The suspect, police say, was eventually taken into custody after he crashed in a residential area in Detroit. He sustained no injuries, but the officer driving the police vehicle sustained a fractured left wrist and a concussion from the impact, police say.
Police say the Jeep was stolen out of Lansing and the driver was reportedly in possession of methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl.
Samuel Wilbur, 31 of Okemos, is now facing charges including Assault with Intent to do Great Bodily Harm less than Murder or by Strangulation, Police Officer, Fleeing, Second Degree, Receiving and Concealing a Stolen Vehicle, Resisting/Obstructing a Police Officer causing Injury, Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Heroin, and Operating without a License.
Wilbur reportedly has previous convictions for property crimes, theft, and domestic violence.
“The intentional ramming of a police vehicle by the suspect shows the dangers officers face every day when working to protect the community. This suspect’s reckless actions seriously injured an officer causing him to miss work. I have no doubt that, if there were another officer seated in the passenger seat of the police SUV, that officer would have been critically injured or killed due to the suspect’s intentional actions. I want to commend all of the Warren Patrol Officers in this incident for working to arrest this violent and dangerous suspect before more harm could occur. This is yet another example of how Warren Police Officers work together to get violent and dangerous offenders off Warren streets," said Warren Police Commissioner William Dwyer.