Suspected drunk driver crashes into police car, narrowly missing tow truck driver

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    WHEAT RIDGE, CO (KCNC) — A suspected drunk driver plowed into a police car at an intersection in Wheat Ridge Sunday, narrowly missing a tow truck driver standing a few feet away. It happened just before 2 a.m. on 38th Avenue, just east of Pierce Street.

The patrol car was parked behind the tow truck, while the tow truck driver was loading a vehicle that had been damaged in an earlier crash. The red truck was speeding westbound on 38th Avenue and plowed into the back of the patrol car. The patrol car was forced into the disabled car it had been protecting, and that vehicle was pushed up onto the sidewalk.

The red truck then turns around, and ends up on the sidewalk across the street and around the corner.

“Thankfully the officer was not in the car at the time of the collision and wasn’t injured,” police said.

The driver of the car from the first crash was standing on the sidewalk and did suffer minor injuries as their car was pushed onto the sidewalk.

“Our officer, the tow truck driver and the folks standing on the curb were all extremely lucky in this case,” said Sara Spaulding with the Wheat Ridge Police Department.

Spaulding said the video is an example of the dangers first responders face on duty.

She said it is also an important lesson to drivers to be aware of their surroundings after getting out of a disabled vehicle.

The pickup was driven by Mathew Paul, 46. He sustained minor injuries and was taken to the hospital. He has not yet been arrested. Police say alcohol is suspected in the crash.

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