PHOENIX – A wrong-way driver, Hector Smith-Soto, was stopped by a DPS trooper on Sunday, March 8, 2020, just after 2:00 a.m. after driving his vehicle onto Interstate 17 heading southbound from the northbound McDowell off-ramp.
DPS was able to locate and follow Smith-Soto’s vehicle on camera and tell troopers where it was. advise of its location. After Smith-Soto corrected his direction, a trooper attempted to stop him, but he failed to stop.
According to DPS, “troopers started a traffic break and performed a Pursuit Intervention Technique, also known as PIT, on the vehicle. After the PIT, the driver attempted to leave. The same sergeant turned his patrol car around and rammed the vehicle, pinning it against the wall.”
Smith-Soto, age 28, was taken into custody without incident. He was processed and booked for aggravated DUI and criminal damage.