CARBONDALE TOWNSHIP -- A police officer was injured in a crash after a high-speed chase involving a motorcycle Wednesday morning, according to Lackawanna County officials.
The incident that left a Carbondale police officer hurt started off with a high-speed chase and then turned into a search for a motorcyclist.
Skid marks at the intersection with Meredith Street indicate where a second Carbondale police cruiser slid through the stop sign. That cruiser hit the first officer's vehicle, injuring him.
Moments after the motorcycle crash, a second Carbondale police cruiser driven by Cory Gonzalez, 21, shot through the stop sign and into another police car. Carbondale Officer David Fofi ended up pinned between his vehicle and the guide rail.
Fofi was taken to the hospital with minor injuries, but the chase suspect was still on the loose.
"Seen him go up in the woods, I didn't know what was going on because I seen police cars," said Tony Cerminaro of Jermyn.
Lackawanna County District Attorney Shane Scanlon just happened to be at a DARE graduation inside the nearby Mayfield Elementary School.
"The school ended up being locked down, the protocol by local police departments so no one could get into the school," said Scanlon.
More than an hour after the search started, local police and state troopers found Christopher Sosa hiding in the bed of a pickup truck at a business in Mayfield.
Investigators say Sosa had a warrant out for his arrest. He was handcuffed and taken by ambulance to the hospital.
"People may wonder if there was an over-pursuit, if an officer slid through a stop sign. I don't have all the information or facts right now so I can't comment on that," said Carbondale Police Chief Jeff Taylor.
"I asked him to put his hands up. He put his hands up. He didn't resist, waited for backup officers and took him into custody," said Archbald Patrolman Jamie Trently.
Police from several different departments as well as state police helped in the search.
Sosa was handcuffed and then taken to the hospital to be treated. There was already a warrant out for his arrest on domestic issues; that's why officers tried to stop him. Sosa will now face fleeing from police and other charges. He was arraigned at the hospital, and his bail was set at $20,000.
Asked what caused the second officer to run the stop sign at Meredith Street and crash, Carbondale Mayor Justin Taylor says it may have been a problem with the vehicle.
"We will review in-house procedures and policy, don't believe any wrongdoing. We think we just had a simple mechanical problem that could have been a lot worse."
