What started as a minor two-car crash Saturday morning in Bethlehem, led to a high speed chase with an inebriated driver who left a handful of damaged Bethlehem police SUVs and other vehicles in his wake, authorities said.
An officer shot at the tire of the Mazada sedan Colin Wentworth was driving, but ultimately, a Bethlehem police officer had to use his SUV to stop Wentworth’s car on Lehigh Street in the city, police said.
Wentworth, who repeatedly ignored officers’ commands, refused to get out of the car, and officers had to break the window and use a stun gun to subdue him, according to police.
The 22-year-old Wentworth had a plastic bag of white powder on his lap, and was taken to the hospital for treatment of intoxication, police said.
Wentworth, of the 1700 block of Valley Forge Road in South Whitehall Township, is in jail, facing charges including fleeing from police and four counts of aggravated assault. He is being held on $50,000 bail.
Police said they were called a little after 8 a.m. Saturday for a minor crash involving Wentworth.
The other driver reported Wentworth was trying to leave the scene, appeared to be high, and had a plastic bag on his lap with an unknown powder, police said. Wentworth reportedly got out of his car, leaving the door open, and walked to the other driver, who told him to close his car door.
Wentworth got back into his car and, when police arrived and knocked on the door, he took off, according to police.
Wentworth was speeding through the city, being chased by an officer with his lights and siren on, police said.
Wentworth pulled into the parking lot of an apartment complex off Florence Avenue and stopped.
Police officers got out of their vehicles, when Wentworth reversed the car toward an officer and struck a police SUV, police said. An officer shot once at the car’s tire as it traveled toward the other officer, in an attempt to disable it, prosecutors said.
Wentworth kept driving, and eventually drove into another apartment complex parking lot off Shimer Avenue. Wentworth turned around and hit a second police SUV head-on, police said, and an officer could hear Wentworth gunning the engine. Wentworth then hit two parked vehicles, and was back to fleeing from police, authorities said.
An officer spotted Wentworth on Lehigh Street and Wentworth struck that police cruiser — the third one that day — then tried to get away by driving on the sidewalk, police said. This time, the officer used his SUV to block Wentworth’s path, and used the vehicle’s push bar to finally stop Wentworth, police said.
All told, police said Wentworth struck three police Ford Explorers and four other vehicles. Police said they learned Wentworth’s driver’s license was suspended related to a previous DUI case.
The Bethlehem Police Department is conducting an investigation to determine if the officer who opened fire on Wentworth’s car was justified in doing so, and that officer is on administrative leave for the time being, the Lehigh County District Attorney’s office said.
Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
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