Driver leads police on chase through Phoenix area before NCAA championship

PHOENIX — Though traffic was expected Monday for the Final Four, the center of attention became a police chase on Phoenix-area freeways.

The chase reportedly began on 51st Avenue and Interstate 10 after an Arizona Department of Public Safety trooper spotted a vehicle moving 80 mph in a 55 mph zone and attempted to pull the driver over.

The driver, identified as Allen Kelly Bartoli Jr., continued driving on I-10 and did not stop. He went down the eastbound Loop 202, heading through Tempe and into Mesa.

All four tires were hit with stop sticks.

The chase ended when a police vehicle appeared to ram the car, causing it to lose control. Police took Bartoli into custody on the eastbound 202 near Gilbert Road. He was tased.

Court documents showed marijuana, methamphetamine, needles and an unidentified substance were found in the car. Bartoli told police he has used marijuana that day.

The documents also said Bartoli has red, dilated eyes and a high pulse.

He also told police he believed he was taking an evaluation on a closed course and had done nothing wrong.

Traffic was backed up for at least a mile as a result of the chase.

L-202 Eastbound near Gilbert: Police activity is causing backups and slow traffic. Use US 60 to avoid. #PhxTraffic

— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) April 4, 2017

All lanes have reopened. #PhxTraffic https://t.co/qlu2qUlmqd

— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) April 4, 2017

Bartoli,a 27-year-old from Morristown, Ariz., was charged with felony flight, possession of dangerous drugs, aggravated DUI and resisting arrest. He already had an outstanding felony warrant in Pinal County.

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