A Woodstock man who hit a vehicle and fled in Harvard led police on a brief pursuit before he crashed again, this time into an electrical pole, causing a transformer fire.
The Harvard Police Department responded around 8:49 p.m. Tuesday to the 700 block of West McKinley Street for a report of a hit-and-run crash.
Harvard Deputy Police Chief Tyson Bauman said the caller reported a vehicle had struck an unoccupied parked car and left the scene.
The victim pointed out the offending vehicle to officers after it returned to the area, Bauman said.
Officers attempted to make a traffic stop on the 2008 Chevrolet but the driver failed to stop and fled the scene again.
The driver lost control of the Chevrolet several blocks away and crashed into a telephone pole at the intersection of 2nd Street and Burbank Street.
Electrical wires came down after the pole was struck and a transformer started on fire.
Bauman said that the driver fled the scene on foot and after a short foot pursuit he was arrested.
The suspect was identified as Frank A. Hernandez, 30, of the 14400 block of Kishwaukee Valley Road in Woodstock.
Hernandez was cited for leaving the scene of an accident involving damage to an unattended vehicle, failure to signal when turning, fleeing and attempting to elude a police officer in a motor vehicle, driving on the wrong side of the road, driving too fast for conditions, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, failure to report an accident to police and unlawful possession of cannabis.
Hernandez was also criminally charged with obstructing a peace officer. He was released and is scheduled to appear in court on May 19.