A 36-year-old Sayre man has been released on a $1,500 from the Beckham County Detention Center after being charged with one felony count of eluding a police officer.
The investigation began at approximately 11:11 pm on October 31 when an Elk City Police Department officer allegedly observed a Dodge Ram traveling at “excessive speed.”
The truck was reportedly driven by Frankie Don Balderas.
“As Balderas began to go through the intersection, where my patrol car became visible, I observed his vehicle begin to slow down, which caused the front of the vehicle to dip down several. He then continued eastbound. I pulled onto the roadway in an attempt to get behind Balderas. As I was attempting to catch up to him, I was reaching speeds of approximately 75 miles per hour and could not close the distance between our vehicles,” the officer wrote.
At the four-way intersection of 20th Street and Randall Avenue, Balderas allegedly disregarded the stop sign and accelerated his speed.
The officer reported speeds of approximately 80 miles per hour in the 35-mile-per-hour zone.
While traveling north on Randall Avenue through Third Street and Country Club Boulevard, the officer estimated speeds of approximately 100 miles per hour.
“On two separate occasions, Balderas nearly lost control of his vehicle, which caused a motorist to have to pull off the roadway and into the ditch in order to avoid a collision,” the officer wrote.
As the officers got near the intersection of East 1030 Road and North 2030 Road, he saw that the Dodge was now facing him with severe damage to the passenger side. The driver’s door was also open.
Balderas reportedly fell to the ground behind the Dodge.
Balderas reportedly complied with commands and was taken into custody without further incident.
He is due back in Beckham County District Court on November 27.
