"After police chase, Melrose man arrested on kidnapping charge" by John R. Ellement and Andy Rosen Globe Staff September 24, 2015
A Melrose man was smoking crack cocaine as he ignored his wife’s frantic pleas to pull over for State Police in a high-speed chase that stretched from Chelsea to Needham Wednesday night, ending when he crashed his car, State Police said.
Dean Conway, 45, of Melrose, allegedly told troopers he had been on the stimulant for six days when police attempted to stop him on Interstate 93. He refused, traveling at speeds up to 100 miles per hour, as his wife waved to troopers in apparent distress, according to a State Police report.
Police said they continued the chase because they believed Conway’s wife was in danger and saw him assaulting his wife.
“I just got scared, thinking about jail, and jail, and jail,” he told investigators, according to the report. Troopers finally caught him in Needham after what they described as a brief foot chase that began when he drove into a tractor-trailer.
Conway was ordered held without bail after his arraignment Thursday in Dorchester Municipal Court. He faces charges including kidnapping, two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, operating under the influence of drugs, and operating after his license was suspended.
He pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for a dangerousness hearing on Sept. 29. His lawyer could not be reached for comment.
State Police said the incident began about 9:30 p.m., when Chelsea police tried to stop the car after receiving reports that a person was being assaulted inside the vehicle.
The driver sped off onto the Tobin Bridge and out of Chelsea, police said.
A few minutes later, his Toyota RAV4 was spotted on Interstate 93 near the Columbia Road exit in Dorchester. Troopers tried to get the vehicle to stop there. But the driver ignored police, began switching lanes suddenly, and accelerated up to 85 miles per hour, State Police said.
The pursuit continued to the Braintree split and onto Interstate 95 in Canton where at one point Conway allegedly veered toward one of the pursuing cruisers. During this part of the chase, speeds reached 100 miles per hour, State Police said.
The pursuit reached Canton and then Needham where highway construction was underway. Conway allegedly drove through safety cones set up to protect workers at two construction sites, and struck a tractor-trailer unit before his vehicle became disabled and he was captured.
After the incident, Conway’s wife — who is not identified in police records — allegedly said that her husband was about to smoke crack when police attempted to stop him. She also said they had been doing heroin Wednesday.
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Also see: Melrose Crib
