SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, July 22, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A suspect led police on a 90-minute chase in a stolen Utah Highway Patrol vehicle after authorities say he intentionally dislocated a thumb to free himself from handcuffs.
Events began as Alexander Elvira Martinez, 24, was arrested on an outstanding warrant and placed in the back seat of a trooper’s cruiser at a gas station on 400 South and Redwood Road. The patrol car did not have a prisoner cage installed, according to arresting documents.
“Martinez dislocated his right thumb and slipped the right handcuff,” says a trooper’s probable cause affidavit on the Thursday evening incident.
Martinez then jumped into the driver’s seat and drove away, the probable cause statement says.
He then proceeded to violate multiple traffic laws, running stop signs, driving southbound in the northbound lanes of Redwood Road, turning east, the wrong way, on one-way 500 South, before abandoning the vehicle at 1170 W. Emery St., the statement says. A UHP helicopter had joined the chase as he fled on foot, finally located in a homeless camp at 1000 W. Folsom Ave. just before 7 p.m.
“Incident to arrest, Martinez had a loaded syringe on his person that was filled with heroin,” a trooper wrote in Martinez’ probable cause affidavit. “Martinez told me that he was not trying to steal a vehicle and did not want to be in jail as he was going to be ‘dope sick.'”
He was booked early Friday morning into the Salt Lake County Jail on suspicion of a bevy of charges, starting with second-degree felony vehicle theft, second-degree felony possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person (the weapon not identified in charging documents), third-degree felony escape from official custody, and two counts of evading police.
He was also charged on misdemeanor drug and paraphernalia possession counts, and traffic offenses including reckless driving, driving the wrong way on a one-way street, driving on a denied license, and failure to wear a seat belt.
