Off-duty officer reportedly intervenes, initiates traffic stop
Fransisco Marin-Cruz faces multiple charges from an incident on Sunday, Nov. 17, in New Garden Township, police said.
A commotion outside the New Garden Township Police station caught the attention of an off-duty officer on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013 at approx. 10:45 p.m., a department news release said.
The officer heard tires squealing, engines racing, and a continuous vehicle horn in the station’s parking lot, located at 8934 Gap Newport Pike, the release said. Exiting the building, the officer observed a Lincoln pickup truck tailgating a car in the parking lot at a high rate of speed. The vehicles then left the lot and continued speeding northbound on Gap Newport Pike, the release said.
The officer got into a police vehicle and initiated a traffic stop on the truck in the 8800 block of Gap Newport Pike, the release said. Prior to approaching the truck, the officer was contacted by the car’s driver, who said the truck operator was trying to kill him. The driver of the truck, identified as Fransisco Marin-Cruz, 18, of Wilmington, De., exhibited signs of intoxication during questioning, and the officer observed several open cans of beer inside the truck, the release said.
Marin-Cruz was taken into custody on suspicion of driving under the influence, the release said. During a post Miranda statement, Marin-Cruz admitted to following the victim from a local business in an attempt to talk to him about a domestic situation involving a mutual female friend, the release said.
In addition to drunken-driving, Marin-Cruz was charged with simple assault, stalking, disorderly conduct, and related summary offenses; he was released pending an appearance in district court, the release said.
