High speed chase caught on tape

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) - A woman who was desperate not to be caught, led police on one heck of a chase in Santa Fe.
     
It spilled city streets on to I-25 and then back to city streets just before midnight Friday.

Police say it's amazing no one was hurt , especially because the driver tried to run them over with her car as they tried to stop her.

The whole chase was caught on tape.

Santa Fe Police say they tried to pull over Antonia Alvarez, 41, after she was spotted driving erratically in a parking lot near St. Michael's Drive and Cerrillos Road.

As soon as they turned on their sirens, they say Alvarez took off.

She flees down Cerrillos and zips onto I-25.

"The driver purposely crossed the double yellow lines into oncoming traffic, thankfully nobody was hurt," said Santa Fe Police Lieutenant Louis Carlos.

When officers tried to deploy spike strips to stop her, they says Alvarez tried to run them over. The video shows them scramble out of the way, and Alvarez just keeps going.

"The chase then came back onto the main streets of Santa Fe, back on to Rodeo Road and onto Cia Road," said Lt. Carlos.

That's when officers pulled out the spike strips again. This time it worked, but Alvarez still didn't give up. Instead she jumped out of the car and ran away. She was caught in a yard nearby.

When police searched the car it was riddled with drugs.

"Drug paraphernalia, heroine, cocaine and hydrocodones," explained Lt. Carlos.

But he said that's not why Alvarez ran. She told police it was because she was wanted on shoplifting charges. Now she's charged with an additional 21 counts.

They include aggravated fleeing, aggravated battery on a peace officer and drug charges.

Police also say there was a man riding in the car with Alvarez. When the chase ended, he took off on foot too. He's still on the loose.

Police say one of the 17 syringes found in Alvarez's car was filled with heroin, but they're not sure if she was high during the chase.

Alvarez has a criminal record dating back to 2008. It includes arrests for breaking and entering, battery, drugs and shoplifting.