An alleged drunk driver was arrested after he drove toward officers investigating a homicide in Waukegan and crashed into two police squad cars, injuring an officer, early Sunday.
The Waukegan Police Department Major Crime Scene Unit and the Criminal Investigations Division were on the scene investigating a shooting, which occurred around 10:30 p.m. Saturday at 10th Street and Lewis Avenue.
The shooting resulted in the death of Niolis Collazo, 23, of Waukegan.
Officers remained on the scene around 1:30 a.m. Sunday investigating the homicide when a silver Toyota Tacoma began traveling directly at them, according to Waukegan Deputy Police Chief Scott Chastain.
The Toyota was driving at a high rate of speed and a police sergeant yelled out to officers to warn them about the vehicle, which did not look like it was going to stop, Chastain said.
The Toyota, driven by David Marroquin-Hernandez, 40, of North Chicago, crashed into an unmarked police car that had its blue and red lights activated.
The collision pushed the unmarked police car into a marked police car.
The crash occurred at Lewis Avenue and Marshal Parkway, Chastain said.
An officer who was next to one of the squad cars suffered minor injuries to her knee during the crash.
Marroquin-Hernandez was arrested for driving without a valid license.
Officers determined he was also driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash, Chastain said.
Marroquin-Hernandez was charged with aggravated driving under the influence, two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol, failure to yield to an emergency vehicle and driving without a driver’s license.
Lake County Judge Theodore Potkonjak ordered Marroquin-Hernandez held on a $350,000 bond during an initial court hearing Monday morning.
He would need to post $35,000 cash in order to be released from the Lake County Jail.