Sullivan County traffic stop takes a violent turn
6/25/12 - 2:02 pm
Sullivan County sheriff's deputy Joseph Gagliardo was injured on Saturday in White Lake, when his patrol car was rammed by a pick-up truck the deputy was trying to stop for speeding.
The Catskill Scoop has, well, the scoop:
When Deputy Gagliardo activated his lights and siren, the pick up truck ignored him and proceeded south on State Route 55. The Deputy was eventually able to pull in front of the truck, which was a Ford F150, and get it stopped. Just as the deputy was about to exit his vehicle, the pick up truck backed up several feet and then lurched forward ramming the marked patrol car. Stunned, the deputy put the patrol car in park and attempted to get his seat belt off when, the pick up backed up again and struck the patrol car a second time, pushing it over 100 feet down the road.
Arrested in the incident, and charged with assault, criminal mischief and driving while intoxicated, was 23-year-old Jeffrey Santiago-Pabon of West Virginia.
Police said Santiago-Pabon, who is employed at a summer camp in Eldred, doesn’t speak English and initially claimed he was from Puerto Rico. At arraignment in the Town of Bethel, he admitted through an interpreter that he is from Mexico.
Deputies have contacted Immigration and Customers Enforcement to determine his legal status in the US.
