A suspect who police say rammed a patrol car before taking off on foot is now in custody.
The incident began in Westminster on Thursday around 10 a.m., when police there tried to contact a car associated with a wanted person.
The suspect, later identified by Westminster Police as 35-year-old Eric Winden, didn't pull over. Instead, police say he drove through a fence, forcing an officer to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by his vehicle.
Officers continued to chase Winden until they say he intentionally rammed a Westminster Police car, police say. The officer was uninjured.
Eventually, Winden crashed his car in the area of the 13200 block of Lowell Boulevard, which is in a neighborhood west of Interstate 25 and West 136th Avenue, near the Broomfield Commons Open Space.
He then took off on foot, prompting a shelter in place for people in the area and causing seven schools to go on lockout as police believed he was armed.
Hours later, he was taken into custody.
Schools in the Adams 12 Five Star District that are on lockout include:
- Arapahoe Ridge Elementary School
- Centennial Elementary School
- Coyote Ridge Elementary School
- Legacy High School
- Meridian Elementary School
- Mountain View Elementary School
- Westlake Middle School
