Drunk driver crashes car into utility pole, causes power outage
A Wednesday night car chase ended with the suspect crashing her vehicle into a utility pole.
Shortly after 8 p.m., an Isabella County sheriff’s deputy noticed a black 2006 Lincoln Zephyr traveling eastbound on Pickard Road at a very slow speed. The vehicle sped up and then slowed back down before finally coming to a complete stop in the middle of the lane.
The deputy turned on his lights and attempted to stop the suspect, who then took off and blew through a stop sign at Winn Road.
The driver passed several cars in a no-passing zone before losing control of her vehicle near Nottawa Road. The vehicle spun out, ran off the road and collided with a utility pole and then a tree.
The crash resulted in a power outage in the area.
Isabella County Sheriff Leo Mioduszewski said police chases are not very common in the area.
“Throughout the year, we get several people who try to out run the police,” he said. “It happens, but not very frequently.”
Mioduszewski said he does not believe any of the individuals were affiliated with Central Michigan University.
The driver, Reba Janeen Navejar, a 28-year-old from Grand Rapids, was arraigned on four charges, including fleeing and eluding, operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, which is a third offense, driving with a suspended license and a parole violation.
Navejar told police she was trying to elude the police because of drugs in the car.
None of the four individuals in the vehicle were injured.
One of the back seat passengers, Clifton Terron Lee III, a 19-year-old male from Grand Rapids, was charged with possession of a controlled substance second offense, which is a felony.
The other two individuals in the vehicle did not break the law and were not arrested.
Both Navejar and Lee are lodged in the Isabella County Jail.
The Isabella County Sheriff’s Department was assisted by the Michigan State Police, the Mount Pleasant Police Department and the Deerfield Fire Department.
