A woman is in the Weld County Jail after police say she led them on a 25-minute chase through Greeley while driving drunk earlier this month.
Police arrested 27-year-old Karina Caraballo on April 4 on suspicion of vehicular eluding and driving under the influence stemming from the chase, according to an affidavit for her arrest.
It was Caraballo’s fourth arrest for driving under the influence, having been convicted three times previously, once in 2015 and twice in 2016, according to Colorado court records. Her license had been revoked as a habitual offender, and she had five outstanding warrants at the time of her arrest.
Just before 8:30 a.m. April 4, Greeley police were dispatched to a parking lot in the 1300 block of 12th Street on a report of people sleeping in a vehicle.
When police arrived, officers saw a man and a woman — later identified as Caraballo — in a silver van, according to the affidavit. Police say they ordered them out of the vehicle multiple times but the two ignored the commands, and officers say they could hear what sounded like the two frantically searching the vehicle, asking each other where the keys were.
An officer let the air out of the van’s tires because “it was obvious they intended to flee in the vehicle,” according to the affidavit.
More officers arrived, and police say one parked a patrol car directly in front of the van to try to stop the van from fleeing.
Police were preparing to break a window to remove the two from the van when the woman found the keys and started the vehicle, according to the affidavit.
Police say she put the van in reverse and rammed a fence, before accelerating away forward. She narrowly missed hitting several officers and another car in the parking lot, according to the affidavit.
Officers began pursuit, when the man jumped out of the window and ran away on foot, according to the affidavit. He was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant for failure to appear but faces no charges related to this incident.
The woman continued fleeing for about 25 minutes through busy streets, followed by marked police cars with lights and sirens, according to the affidavit.
Police say she ran stop lights and stop signs, narrowly missing pedestrians and other vehicles. She was unable to fully control the vehicle since all four tires were flat, but continued to drive, according to the affidavit.
Officers eventually deployed a drone and discontinued pursuit, tracking her until she finally stopped in the 1700 block of Sixth street, according to the affidavit.
Police say her behavior was extremely erratic and her eyes were bloodshot and watery when they contacted her. She was sweating profusely and unable to respond to simple questions, according to the affidavit. She initially refused a blood test but later requested one once she had been taken to the hospital.
Caraballo was taken to the Weld County Jail without incident. She has a disposition hearing scheduled for May 3 at Weld District Court.
