SAN ANTONIO – UPDATE: The Bexar County Sheriff's Office has identified the two men arrested following a vehicle chase and crash Thursday night.
Mario Mendoza and David Eifert were taken into custody by deputies.
The BCSO said the men refused to pull over during a traffic stop and instead sped off, leading deputies on a chase.
The BCSO said the men rammed a patrol vehicle and drove the wrong way on the access road of I-35 before crashing into at least two vehicles.
When deputies finally caught up to the vehicle, the pair jumped out and tried to run, deputies said.
Authorities say Mendoza and Eifert both have multiple outstanding warrants.
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(Original Story)
Two men are in custody following a pursuit and several crashes on the Northeast Side on Thursday evening, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said.
The pursuit began around 6:30 p.m. when deputies with the Street Crimes Unit were conducting routine patrols in the area. They came across a driver in a vehicle who was in the process of committing several traffic violations that were hazardous in nature, BCSO said.
The deputies initiated a traffic stop and the driver of the vehicle took off at a high rate of speed, according to Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar.
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Deputies pursued the vehicle up Austin Highway to Eisenhauer Road and up Lanark Drive.
Salazar said it was a lengthy pursuit and the driver initiated hazardous behavior and rammed a patrol vehicle.
The driver then headed the wrong way on the access road of I-35 and struck a vehicle almost head-on, BCSO said. The victim in that crash only had minor injuries.
The driver in the vehicle being pursued then went up I-35 onto the main lanes and was driving the wrong way. He then struck another vehicle, Salazar said.
The vehicle then became disabled due to damage after several crashes.
Deputies caught up to the vehicle, but the driver had jumped out while it was still in motion, Salazar said. The driver of the vehicle had several facial injuries that were “pretty bad in nature,” he said.
The passenger ran and crossed the highway onto the other side of I-35, where deputies pursued him on foot and were able to get him into custody.
The two people in custody have multiple felony warrants. The driver is a 37-year-old man with five felony warrants for possession of drugs and weapons and evading-type offenses, according to BCSO.
Salazar said the passenger is a 32-year-old man with seven felony warrants.
The sheriff said several people were injured during the pursuit. After the crash, a San Antonio police officer who was directing traffic was stuck by a vehicle, according to Police Chief William McManus.
The officer’s leg was pinned between two vehicles, McManus said. The 11-year veteran officer was taken into surgery at Brooke Army Medical Center.
McManus did not mention if there would be any charges for the driver of the vehicle that stuck the officer.
The officer works out of the East Patrol Substation.
After the crash, a "Cops" television crew was seen filming the aftermath.
