Driver Arrested After Wild, High-Speed Highway Chase
BOSTON (CBS) – A man from Melrose is being held without bail after police say he kidnapped a woman and then led troopers on a wild, high-speed chase for 30-miles while high on crack.
State Police said it began in Chelsea just before 10 p.m. Wednesday when officers got a report that 45-year-old Dean Conway assaulted someone inside a Toyota RAV4.
Chelsea police tried to stop the SUV, but the driver got away over the Tobin Bridge. State Police found it a few minutes later in Dorchester on Interstate 93.
Conway "changed lanes frequently," according to a police statement, and "hit speeds of 85 mph."
As the pursuit headed to the Braintree split, a trooper saw a "female passenger frantically waving her arms for help" in the SUV and Conway hitting her.
That woman later told police Conway smoked crack the entire time and she told him to stop the car 25-to-30 times. She claimed she even pulled the emergency brake to try to end the chase.
When it moved into Canton, troopers say Conway veered his SUV into one of the cruisers "in what appeared to be an intentional act."
The pursuit reached speeds of 100 miles per hour as it moved onto Route 95 north through construction work on the highway.
"As it neared the Highland Ave exit in Needham, suspect drove through a second road construction setup, hit a number of traffic cones, and put road construction workers in harm's way," State Police spokesman Dave Procopio said in the statement.
"The suspect vehicle then tried to exit the construction zone and struck a tractor trailer unit and became disabled near Exit 19A."
Investigators say Conway tried to run away after crashing his SUV, but troopers caught him and arrested him. When they asked him why he didn't stop, police say they told him he was afraid of going to jail.
Procopio said one trooper "suffered an apparent minor injury."
The woman was evaluated by Needham EMS and taken to a shelter. "She was advised of her right to obtain a restraining order but refused to do so," Procopio said.
Conway was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, kidnapping, operating to endanger, reckless operation, failure to stop, leaving scene of property damage,operating after suspension and OUI drugs.
He was arraigned Thursday in Dorchester District Court. He's due back there September 29.
