A kidnapping suspect led police on a wild chase across the George Washington Bridge Friday afternoon, crashing into Port Authority police cars on both sides of the span before being apprehended, authorities said.
Authorities in Pennsylvania say the suspect, Luis Figueroa, 33, of the Bronx and Hazelton, Pennsylvania, was on a three-state crime spree that ended in New York around noon when he crashed a stolen Cadillac Escalade.
Figueroa was heading east toward Manhattan when he first crashed into a Port Authority police car, sending that car slamming into the toll booth on the west side of the span. He crossed the bridge and struck another Port Authority vehicle, disabling his getaway car. He was arrested as he tried to flee on foot.
Police in Hazleton, Penn. said Figueroa was on a crime spree that started when he attempted to abduct one woman from a Hazleton home and then abducted another and fled, according to the NBC affiliate station WBRE. Hazleton police said Figueroa stole a vehicle from a park ranger in the Poconos, during which time the woman he allegedly abducted escaped. He then drove to Paterson, NJ, where he stole the Escalade and lit a fire at a used car dealership, police said.
Two Port Authority police officers were treated for minor injuries at Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck. Three lanes of the bridge were closed following the accident and traffic problems on the bridge lingered through the evening rush.
