Man arrested after nearly running over deputy, barricading himself in barn
KDVR Fox 31
DENVER (KDVR) — A man was arrested after nearly running over a deputy during a traffic stop before evading law enforcement, driving into a patrol car and barricading himself in a barn on private property according to the Larimer County Sheriff's Office.
A Larimer County Sheriff's deputy was performing a traffic stop just after 3 a.m. on Oct. 23 near Eisenhower Boulevard and Sculptor Drive in Loveland when they were nearly hit by a speeding vehicle.
The vehicle was identified as a white 2018 Buick Encore which eluded Loveland police when they tried to stop it.
The Buick was located around 1st Street and S. Taft Avenue in Loveland, where deputies attempted to contact the driver. The driver did not respond, turned off the headlights and sped away.
Law enforcement chased the suspect on Highway 402 and south on Interstate 25 and at times exceeded speeds of 110 miles per hour. The Buick exited onto Highway 56 in Berthoud before driving into a park-and-ride-lot and driving into a Larimer County Sheriff's Office cruiser.
The Buick was still able to drive and began to travel in the wrong direction down a northbound I-25 exit ramp. The deputies were able to use a Precision Immobilization Technique, also known as a PIT maneuver, to stop the vehicle and the suspect exited on foot and escaped into a field on a nearby private property in the 4300 block of Weld County Road 44.
A woman was found in the stopped vehicle and remained at the scene until she was later released.
Law enforcement began to search the area near the field and determined the suspect had barricaded themselves in a barn. The All-Hazards/Crisis Response team was brought in to assist the situation. They used a drone to identify the suspect's location until they eventually surrendered around 9:50 a.m. and were taken into custody.
The suspect was later identified as Terrick Wilkins, 20.
Wilkins faces the following charges:
- Vehicular eluding
- Second-degree criminal trespass — agricultural land
- Attempted vehicular assault
- Obstructing a peace officer
- Resisting arrest
- Careless driving — failed to yield to a stationary vehicle
- Driving vehicle with license revoked
- Failure to display vehicle headlamps
- Speeding — 40+ mph over
“This suspect came within inches of taking our deputy’s life, then endangered our community by driving recklessly to get away. This complete disregard for public safety is unacceptable,” said LCSO Undersheriff Joe Shellhammer. “I’m beyond relieved that nobody got hurt today. Offenders need to be held accountable for their actions or this cycle of danger will just continue.”
No injuries were reported in connection to this incident.