Driver fleeing police crashes into downtown home

A wanted man crashed into a home while trying to flee from Columbus police Tuesday night.

According to police reports, officers tried to stop an SUV in the 1100 block of Pearl Street at about 11:40 Tuesday night, but the driver raced away, running a stop sign and striking another vehicle near 8th Street and Hutchins Avenue. The driver then crashed into the front porch of a home in the 700 block of Hutchins Avenue.

Occupants of the fleeing vehicle then ran away, but police caught the driver, 38-year-old Melvin G. Foree of Columbus.

He was arrested on preliminary charges of leaving the scene of an accident, resisting law enforcement, reckless driving and driving while suspended with a prior conviction. He was also found to have an outstanding Bartholomew County warrant.

The occupants in the second vehicle were uninjured and the crash caused minor damage to the home.

Crash photo courtesy of Columbus Police Department.