A Massachusetts man is facing multiple charges after leading police on a high-speed car chase going up to 130 miles per hour on Interstate 93 in New Hampshire Thursday night.
New Hampshire State Police said one of their officers observed a vehicle traveling 109 mph swerving erratically on I-93 north in Bow around 10:23 p.m. Thursday. The officer attempted to stop the vehicle as it entered the ramp onto Interstate 89, but the vehicle did not stop, instead increasing its speed to 130 miles per hour.
The officer did not continue to pursue the vehicle, but noted that it took Exit 2 toward Concord, where they lost sight of it.
Another police officer who had just left the Concord State Police headquarters saw a vehicle pull over to the side of the road next to the headquarters and turned off its lights. The trooper realized that it matched the description of the vehicle that had just fled, but as soon as the driver saw the trooper, he started driving again. He started to turn into the parking lot of the state police headquarters before she realized where he was, at which point he pulled out of the parking lot and fled once more.
State police began to pursue the vehicle, which continued to operate erratically and at varying speeds as it attempted to elude state police, crossing a median twice. The vehicle eventually struck a concrete sidewalk on Manchester Street in Concord and crashed on the Merrimack River Bridge, where the driver was taken into custody.
The driver, identified by police as Gabriel Lima, 24, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, was taken to an area hospital with minor injuries. He is charged with three counts of aggravated driving under the influence; two counts of reckless conduct; two counts of crossing a median; one count of disobeying an officer; and one count of operating without a license, a felony.
The accident remains under investigation. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Agent John Zavala at 603-223-8785 or email [email protected].
