A high-speed car chase ripped through Rocky Mountain National Park on Trail Ridge Road early this week. The suspect, who was recklessly driving and collided with another vehicle before escaping on foot, was arrested the next day in the High Drive area outside the park, according to the National Park Service. He has been identified as Wayde Thyfault from Hudson, Colorado.
Thyfault, a 23-year-old male, reportedly sped through the Grand Lake entrance of the park Sunday afternoon. He refused to pull over to the park’s law enforcement rangers and continued at high speeds through the park.
“Because of the suspect’s high rates of speed and recklessness, law enforcement rangers backed off on the pursuit,” said the official statement.
The Estes Park Police Department and Larimer County Sheriff’s Office also responded to assist. The officers placed tire deflation spikes on the road near the Beaver Meadows Entrance in an attempt to slow his vehicle.
Just past the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center, Thyfault hit the spikes. This caused him to crash into and critically injured three people in another vehicle, reported NPS.
After the collision, Thyfault ran northeast toward homes along High Drive in the town of Estes Park. Residents were advised by the police department to shelter in place.
He was arrested the next day near homes in western Estes Park, close to where he crashed, according to a park spokesperson.
According to the report, Thyfault is believed to be a suspect in a felony burglary case out of Grand County that remains under investigation.
