KANARRAVILLE — A driver was arrested Tuesday following a high-speed pursuit that ended when he crashed his vehicle on Interstate 15 in Iron County.
Donovan Jared Grandberry, 21, who reportedly was not injured in the crash, was later booked into Washington County’s Purgatory Correctional Facility on suspicion of multiple charges, including failure to stop at the command of police, possession of a firearm by a restricted person, reckless driving, driving on a revoked license and possession of marijuana.
According to the probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday in support of Grandberry’s arrest, at approximately 2:44 p.m. Tuesday, Utah Highway Patrol troopers were notified of a report of reckless driving involving a gray Audi A5 with Nevada license plates on northbound I-15 near Exit 16 in Washington County.
The UHP trooper who wrote the affidavit said he was stationary in the median near mile marker 28 when he saw the suspect vehicle approaching rapidly. Although the trooper activated his emergency lights to initiate a traffic stop, the Audi driver reportedly sped up instead of pulling over.
“The suspect vehicle sped up to speeds over 122 mph, driving reckless from lane to lane, and taking exits without stopping at stop signs as I pursued,” the trooper wrote in the affidavit, adding that he terminated the pursuit miles later due to weather, traffic, and losing sight of the suspect vehicle.
A few minutes later, the suspect vehicle was reported as having crashed into a cable barrier in the center median on I-15.
Tuesday evening, before the probable cause statement had been filed, Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Clay Allred spoke to Cedar City News via phone and provided preliminary details about the incident.
“The troopers lost him just south of New Harmony and they couldn’t see him, so they were terminating,” Allred said. “And then, as soon as they terminated, he asked one of our (other) troopers who was set up to intercept him with a spike strip.”
However, Allred said that by the time the trooper who was based in Iron County was able to catch up to the suspect vehicle, it had already crashed.
“We assume he was probably doing nearly 100 miles an hour when he crashed,” Allred said. “But this cable barrier did its job and kind of rode down his speed.”
Troopers were then able to take the suspect into custody without further incident.
“Medical arrived on scene to evaluate him but he denied any need for medical evaluation,” Allred said.
According to the affidavit, troopers found multiple guns inside the vehicle, along with an unspecified amount of suspected marijuana.
“The suspect, Donovan Grandberry, had a revoked Nevada driver’s license and is a registered felon,” the affidavit states, adding, “Donovan’s car and his person smelled strongly of the odor of marijuana.”
As of Tuesday morning, Grandberry, who is listed as a resident of Henderson, Nevada, is being held without bail as he awaits his initial court appearance.
This report is based on statements from court documents and law enforcement officials and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.