Speeding past Ceres cop on Highway 99 was man’s first mistake. It got worse from there
A Modesto man faces a slew of charges after blowing past a patrol car on Highway 99 on Friday night, leading an officer on a pursuit and, when finally apprehended, having an assault weapon in his vehicle, according to the Ceres Police Department.
A driver later identified as Nicholas Villafana, 27, passed Ceres officer Jonathan Blount about 11:23 p.m. on the highway, near Hatch Road, according to a news release from police spokesman Sgt. Greg Yotsuya on Tuesday.
Blount was going 70 mph and increased his speed to match Villafana’s Honda, which the officer determined was traveling at more than 90 mph.
Lights and siren were activated as Blount tried to pull over Villafana, who instead increased his speed to over 100 mph, Yotsuya said.
The pursuit continued south to Turlock, where the Honda got off the highway at Taylor Road. It continued south on Golden State Boulevard, again in excess of 100 mph.
Villafana turned east onto Monte Vista Avenue, then south onto Crowell Road and into a neighborhood, Yotsuya said. He stopped in the 3000 block of Radford Way, got out of the Honda and ran into a home through its open roll-up garage door.
Blount remained in place as he awaited backup. When Turlock police officers and Stanislaus County sheriff’s deputies joined him, Blount used his patrol car loudspeaker to order any occupants of the home to come out.
Several, including Villafana, exited. He was detained, and a black assault rifle with no markings or serial number was found in the Honda, Yotsuya said. The rifle contained a high-capacity, removable magazine loaded with .556-caliber ammunition.
Villafana was arrested and booked into jail on charges including felony reckless evasion of an officer, possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of ammunition by a felon, possession of a large-capacity magazine and carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle.
He also was wanted on a parole violation warrant by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Villafana remained in custody Tuesday afternoon.
