A convicted felon from Hartford is in custody after a dangerous police chase
By: -----
According to Connecticut State Police, the 24-year-old suspect fled the Willimantic Police Department after a routine traffic stop in that city, which is part of Windham.
That started a multi-town police chase in which the suspect — who police said was driving under the influence — tried to intentionally run another vehicle off the road and hit multiple state police cruisers, police said.
State police posted dramatic dashcam footage of the pursuit's end when troopers forcibly stopped the vehicle on Route 6.
Police said the suspect, identified as Julian Ramos, 24, of Hartford, was charged with falsifying a registration plate; operating a motor vehicle without minimum insurance; reckless driving; engaging police in pursuit; operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol/drugs; failure to drive right; failure to maintain lane; operating a motor vehicle while utilizing a hand-held device; operating a motor vehicle without a license; first-degree criminal damage to property; attempt at second-degree assault; and second-degree reckless endangerment.
Ramos is being held on a $500,000 bond and was expected to appear in Rockville Superior Court on Wednesday, Jan. 8.
State police said it all started at 10 p.m. Tuesday night, when Troopers from Troop C in Tolland were notified by the Willimantic Police Department that a Honda Civic driven by Ramos engaged police in pursuit.
Police said Ramos is a "known convicted felon on probation."
Willimantic police said the vehicle had fled from numerous traffic stops in previous weeks, state police said.
Troopers eventually located the suspect vehicle at a gas station on Boston Post Road in the Town of Windham.
Police said, that as troopers converged and attempted to box the vehicle in, the operator maneuvered his vehicle forward and backward.
In doing so, he intentionally rammed two occupied state police cruisers in an attempt to get away, police said.
The vehicle then fled the gas station and entered Route 6 West in the Town of Mansfield.
Police said the vehicle continued on Route 6 into Columbia, "where it suffered a mechanical failure, reducing speeds to less than 40 miles per hour."
Troopers observed the suspect vehicle attempt to intentionally run a civilian car off the road, police said.
This prompted troopers to make "intentional contact" with the Civic at low speeds to bring the vehicle to a controlled and forced stop.
No other vehicles were struck in the process.
The operator was given verbal commands and, with the help of a State Police K-9, was then taken into custody without further incident or injury.
No troopers were injured, and three state police vehicles sustained minor damage during these events.