Driver hits multiple vehicles during high-speed chase with two kids in car, AZ cops say

An Arizona man led police on a high-speed chase, hitting multiple cars and causing several accidents while there were two children in his vehicle, police said.

Mesa police received a call from a woman at about 8 p.m. on Oct. 30, saying that her boyfriend had punched her while she was driving with two children, a 6-year-old and a 3-month-old, seated in the back of the car, court documents said.

According to the documents, her boyfriend, 30-year-old Luis Enrique Fernandez, told her that he was “going to choke her until she was unconscious and that she would never see the kids again.” She stopped the car on the freeway because she could no longer see after being struck in the face and eyes, and Fernandez pushed her into the passenger seat and continued to drive the car. She tried to escape, but Fernandez pulled her back in by her hair, court documents said.

Eventually, he dropped her off and tried to remove her clothes, telling her she “could walk home naked.” He then took off in the car with both children still inside, which is when the woman was finally able to call police, court documents said.

Fernandez “actively fled from police” and “traveled through multiple cities into Phoenix” while intentionally hitting other vehicles, causing several accidents, court documents said.

When officers caught up with Fernandez, he rammed into a “fully marked and occupied” Phoenix police vehicle in what officers believed was an attempt to escape. Police eventually broke the car window and pulled him out in order to take him into custody, court documents said.

Fernandez admitted to arguing with his girlfriend, but did not acknowledge being violent toward her. He said he had been kicked out of their home the previous day, but that he met up with his girlfriend and the two children for an event that night. He admitted to drinking, fleeing from police, ramming into other vehicles, and hitting the police car, all while the two children were in the car, court documents said.

He also asked officers if the children were okay and if they could express his remorse to his girlfriend, court documents said.

He now faces multiple charges, including child abuse, aggravated assault, and aggravated DUI, court documents said.

The two children were not hurt, azcentral reported. The police did not know the relationship between the children, the man arrested and the woman, a public information officer told McClatchy News.

This story was originally published November 2, 2021 at 2:26 PM with the headline "Driver hits multiple vehicles during high-speed chase with two kids in car, AZ cops say."