Suspect Fleeing Police Drives Wrong Way on I-95: Police

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA -- An attempted police stop of a car with expired license plates turned into a police chase with a driver fleeing and driving the wrong way down Interstate 95 early Wednesday morning, according to Fairfax County Police.

The incident began at 12:58 a.m. Wednesday, when a patrol officer from the West Springfield District Station was northbound on Rolling Road near Barta Road (see map below) when he observed a 2001 Lexus being operated with expired state license plates.

The officer activated his emergency lights and sounded his siren in an attempt to make a stop of the vehicle. The vehicle immediately turned onto the Fairfax County Parkway and increased its speed, actively disregarding the officer’s signal to stop, police said.

Lexus enters northbound lanes traveling southbound

The suspect vehicle eventually made its way to I-95, where it entered the northbound lanes traveling southbound, according to Fairfax County Police. In accordance with Virginia Code and FCPD policy, no police vehicles followed the vehicle into oncoming traffic, police said.

Several minutes later, a separate patrol unit located the vehicle, which was by then traveling north on I-95 in the proper lanes, police said. Fairfax County patrol units again engaged in a traffic pursuit with the vehicle, which continued from I-95 north, onto I-495 north toward the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

As the pursuit neared the Maryland line, the FCPD police helicopter, Fairfax 1, arrived overhead. Prior to the pursuit entering Maryland, FCPD ground patrol units terminated their pursuit as Fairfax 1 continued to follow the vehicle and coordinated with police agencies in both Maryland and the District of Columbia.

The vehicle eventually stopped in the District on the Anacostia Freeway, south of East Capital Street. Four subjects fled from the vehicle and the helicopter was able to guide U.S. Park Police units to three of the four occupants, who were all detained. The initial pursuing Fairfax County officer responded to the location to obtain suspect information from Park Police officers. The three subjects were identified and released by the United States Park Police.

During the course of the pursuit there were no crashes and no injuries, police pointed out.

The Fairfax County investigation will continue, to determine the identity of the driver of the fleeing vehicle.

PHOTO of police lights/Shutterstock