SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Feb. 4, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — A 33-year-old parole fugitive has been booked into the Salt Lake County jail after police say he fled a traffic stop after providing a false name and license, then struck a Salt Lake City Police detective while hitting the gas in a panicked attempt to escape.
The driver, later identified as Girato Kamilo Phillip, made it about a half-mile with police cars in pursuit, then lost control of the vehicle and crashed through the wall of an occupied nightclub and into an unoccupied bathroom.
Phillip’s “female passenger suffered a severe cut to her face and had to crawl out of the rear windshield of the vehicle,” Phillip’s affidavit says.
Phillip was taken into custody at 1:29 a.m. Sunday.
The traffic stop
The incident began when SLCPD officers stopped the vehicle because it was uninsured. It also was registered to Phillip, who has an active arrest warrant. The driver produced an identification card that had someone else’s name and face, arresting documents say.
“The picture of this individual clearly did not match the driver, and the driver claimed to not have any identification on his person,” the filing officer wrote. “The single female passenger provided her information to detectives.
“Due to the discrepancy, detectives asked the male to exit the vehicle. The driver then immediately accelerated away while four uniformed officers were next to the vehicle. Your affiant was next to the vehicle in my own vehicle and I observed this occur. Your affiant saw all four detectives immediately back away from the vehicle as it accelerated away.”
The filing officer chased the vehicle, which he estimated was traveling at about 70 mph when it struck the wall of the nightclub in the general area of 161 S. Pueblo St.
“The suspect vehicle crashed through an exterior wall and came to rest inside the bathroom of the club. The female passenger suffered a severe cut to her face and had to crawl out of the rear windshield of the vehicle. She was transported to the hospital. The driver suffered no major injuries but refused to exit the vehicle, so he had to be pulled from the vehicle by detectives.”
The arrest
Once in custody, the driver identified himself by another name that was not his, the affidavit says. The two false names he gave were those of relatives. Phillip’s actual name was determined, and a records check confirmed his parole fugitive status, which was due to his failure to appear after an earlier charge of aggravated robbery. He was also driving on a denied license.
Phillip was medically cleared and was booked into jail.
The arresting officers noted the accident could have caused more injuries.
“The suspect in this case fled in such a reckless manner that he crashed into an occupied building and narrowly missed seriously injuring or killing several people inside the building, as well as his passenger and himself,” the arresting officer noted.
The detective
The reporting officer was able to speak with the detective whom, he said in the probable cause statement, had appeared injured. The detective said the vehicle had brushed against him. He said “he had to jump back from the vehicle as quickly as possible to avoid his foot being run over by the rear tire and to avoid being struck by any part of the vehicle. (He) told your affiant that he could feel the vehicle moving against his knee/thigh as it traveled forward. (The detective) said he hit the curb behind his feet as he jumped back.
“Based on your affiant’s observations and (the detective’s) statements, your affiant believes that (he) would have suffered serious injury had he not acted immediately.”
“The suspect in this case fled in such a reckless manner that he crashed into an occupied building and narrowly missed seriously injuring or killing several people inside the building, as well as his passenger and himself,” the arresting officer noted..
Phillip was booked into jail for investigation of:
- Failure to respond to officer’s signal to stop, a second-degree felony
- Aggravated assault, a third-degree felony
- Two counts of false personal info with intent to be another actual person, a class A misdemeanor
- Reckless driving, a class B misdemeanor
- Operating vehicle without insurance, a class C misdemeanor
- Driving on denied license, a class C misdemeanor
Phillip was ordered held without bail.
