For the second time in less than three weeks, Wilton police were involved in a car chase on Route 7.
On Thursday, Sept. 17, around 1 a.m., a driver of a stolen 2000 Honda CR-V on Route 7 near Wolfpit Road refused to stop after being signaled for a non-working tail light. The driver continued north at normal speeds with Wilton police in pursuit. Police ultimately deployed spike strips that deflated the two front tires of the vehicle.
That did not stop Kareem Mayo, 38, of 209 Shelton Avenue, New Haven, who drove an additional three to four miles after hitting the strips with police from three towns involved. The spike strips were set just north of Four Seasons Racquet Club at 589 Danbury Road, but the chase came to an end near the Days Inn in Ridgefield, at 296 Ethan Allen Highway.
It did not end cooperatively. According to police, Mayo ran from the stolen Honda and hid under a nearby car, where he was immediately subdued.
On his person they found a crack pipe, and he admitted to having been driving under the influence of crack and MDMA, also known as ecstasy.
An inventory of the stolen vehicle later revealed small plastic bags that contained what police believed to be cocaine.
It was also determined later that the Honda was stolen from Waterbury. The in-cruiser system Wilton police use to run registration plates was down at the time of the pursuit.
Mayo was charged with DUI, reckless driving, an out tail lamp, larceny by possession in the third degree, interfering with officers, possession of narcotics and possession of drug paraphernalia.
He was given a cash bond of $10,000, which he was unable to post, and was arraigned at Norwalk Superior Court the same day.
According to police, officers from Ridgefield and Redding helped pursue Mayo.
Less than a month earlier, a similar scenario played out. On Aug. 29, 19-year-old Marlon E. Sumner-Harris of Norwalk was arrested after evading police for 20 minutes up and down Route 7 and on other Wilton roads.
Sumner-Harris, however, saw the spike strips police deployed and stopped before his tires were punctured.