Police: Car Thief Almost Hit Cop, Fled, Crashed, Fled Again

A North Jersey man was arrested Wednesday after police say he nearly hit a patrol car in a stolen vehicle before crashing on Route 80 and fleeing police for more than five hours.

According to Mt. Olive Police, Officer Andrew Spotts was heading to a domestic dispute call around 12:40 a.m. on Route 46 when a maroon pickup truck nearly sideswiped the officer’s car.

Spotts continued on his way to the dispute call while Officer Christopher Saunders stopped the truck near the intersection of International Drive, police said.

While Saunders was advising dispatch of the vehicle registration, the driver of the pickup truck exited his vehicle, faced the patrol car, and placed his hands on his head, police said.

At that time, while standing in the roadway, the pickup truck began to roll forward. The driver jumped back into the vehicle, which then “rapidly accelerated” and took the on ramp to Route 80 east, police said.

The truck began traveling at a high rate of speed and “serpentining” down the road, at some points moving from the Route 80 east shoulder to the fog line by the median, police said. At that point Saunders stopped his chase of the vehicle, but then saw it strike the guide rail to the opposite side of and just east of Exit 28, police said.

The force of the crash propelled the truck through the guide rail, flipped, and fell between the Route 80 east and west overpasses onto Landing Road in Roxbury Township, police said.

The driver, not wearing his seatbelt, was ejected from the truck in the median of Route 80, police said. Not seriously injured, he then took off running across Route 80 east and into the wooded area near the Sanchez Construction Company.

More than five hours later, a Mt. Olive Police lieutenant saw a man, later identified as Tyler Doyle, 18, of Allamuchy, walking on Route 46 near Days Inn in Roxbury. The officer made contact with Doyle and determined he was the driver of the pickup truck, police said.

Doyle sustained bumps, bruises, and minor cuts and scrapes, police said. He refused medical attention and was arrested and transported to Mt. Olive Police Headquarters.

Further investigation revealed the truck Doyle was driving was stolen from Washington Township in Morris County, police said. Doyle was also identified as the subject in a spat of car burglaries in Mt. Olive and Hackettstown, police said.

Doyle was charged with possession of a stolen motor vehicle, eluding, obstructing the administration of justice, hindering apprehension, and other motor vehicle offenses for the Wednesday incident. He was further charged with four counts of burglary and theft, with pending charges from Hackettstown and Mansfield.

Doyle’s bail was set at $25,000 with a 10-percent option and he was remanded to Morris County Jail.