PITTSTON TWP. — A Swoyersville man wanted for initiating separate pursuits with police in Kingston and Wilkes-Barre initiated his third pursuit with Pittston Township police that involved multiple crashes into parked and moving vehicles and concrete barriers on Wednesday.
Pittston Township Police Sgt. Arnulfo Rivera spotted a white Cadillac parked near the entrance of Walmart in the Pittston Crossroads Plaza on state Route 315 just before 4:30 p.m. Rivera was aware a white Cadillac was involved in a pursuit in Wilkes-Barre City on July 30.
A registration check revealed the Cadillac was owned by Jeffrey Santee, 53, of Dennison Street, who had outstanding arrest warrants in Kingston and Wilkes-Barre for separate vehicle pursuits, according to court records.
When officers approached and used their cruisers to box Santee from driving away, he claimed his back hurt. Instead, court records say, Santee accelerated the Cadillac that struck a parked vehicle, then reversed, nearly striking several officers who had to jump out of the way from being struck.
Santee initiated a pursuit on Route 315 and crashed on a roundabout in Avoca, court records say.
Police allege Santee regained control of the Cadillac and accelerated at a high rate of speed through multiple municipalities, and returned to Route 315, where he turned into the Petro Travel Center in Dupont.
While in the travel center’s parking lot, court records say, Santee struck the rear of a moving tractor-trailer, proceeded behind a building where he struck a concrete barrier and a large shipping container used to store equipment.
With no exit behind the building, two police officers set up their cruisers to prevent Santee from escaping, court records allege.
Santee allegedly reversed the Cadillac and intentionally struck the two cruisers, but his Cadillac was pushed against the shipping container that ended the pursuit.
Santee was evaluated at the scene by emergency medical technicians and transported to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Plains Township.
• Wilkes-Barre police pursuit on July 30: A license plate check on the white Cadillac revealed Kingston’s arrest warrant while Santee was spotted driving on Scott Street near Pine Street. Santee initiated a pursuit, nearly colliding with a city police cruiser on Kidder Street, and turned north on Interstate 81, forcing other motorists and tractor-trailers onto the shoulder of the highway. The pursuit was terminated near the Montage exit.
• Kingston police pursuit on July 5: Police responded to a reported unconscious man in the Cadillac parked outside Turkey Hill. As an officer arrived, Santee drove to a nearby coffee shop, where he told the officer he was tired and “I’m out of here,” when he imitated a pursuit through a shopping center parking lot. The pursuit was terminated due to pedestrians.
Santee was arraigned by District Judge James Dixon of Hazle Township on multiple counts of fleeing or eluding police, aggravated assault by vehicle, simple assault, reckless endangerment, and traffic offenses. Santee was jailed without bail at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility.
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