Parolee Charged After Leading Police on a Chase Through Three Towns

A 30-year-old out on parole was charged late last month with felony fleeing and eluding police after authorities in three towns tracked him and the car he was driving crashed into a building.

Edwin Medina was also charged with reckless driving, driving without a license, driving without insurance, speeding and driving without headlights for an incident that started at 1 a.m. in the 7600 block of Roosevelt Road, police said.

It ended nearly 24 hours later, when Medina turned himself in to Forest Park police. Had he not, a Facebook page on a cell phone and the phone itself, which was recovered at the site of the crash, would had provided police with his identity, Dep. Chief Tom Aftanas said.

"We would have followed up on it," Aftanas said. "We had his last known address."

According to Forest Park Police, this is what happened:

An officer traveling west on the 7600 block of Roosevelt Road reported seeing a brown car speeding east. As he began conducting a traffic stop, the car sped up and continued traveling south on Harlem from Roosevelt Road, police said. 

The car continued to accelerate as it turned left on 14th Street from Harlem into Berwyn, police said.

The officer continued to follow the car, which turned right from 14th on to southbound Clinton Avenue and turned off his headlights. The officer reported seeing the car traveling down alleys and side streets, but briefly lost track of the car. While following the vehicle's last known direction, the officer again spotted the car at 19th and Wenonah Avenue in Berwyn.

The car continued speeding west on 19th and headed north on Harlem Avenue. The officer turned on his emergency lights and sirens as the car he was pursuing continued speeding east on 16th Street with its lights still off. At this point, the officer ended his pursuit at 16th and Ridgeland Avenue at the direction of the department.

Shortly afterward the car was located at 58th Court and 16th Street in Cicero after it struck a building. The car was found unoccupied, but a witness told police they saw a man and a woman run from the car. Cicero police searched the area without success. The only damage was to the suspect's car.

Medina later came into the station to turn himself in.

When asked if he was the driver and why he fled, Edwin told police "I saw you and I thought you were going to pull me over for my [tinted windows]. I don't have a license and I'm on probation."

No one was injured in connection with the incident, Aftanas said.

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