A Cheyenne man suspected in a drive-by shooting Friday night failed to escape police when his Chevy Tahoe’s wheel fell off during a car chase, authorities say.
Cheyenne Police Department officers responded at about 9:35 p.m. Friday to the 1600 block of West Jefferson Road on a report of shots being fired, according to a statement the department released Saturday.
A male was sitting in his truck when the suspect, later identified as Demetrius Coletti, 45, of Cheyenne, drove by and fired at him, the statement said.
The round missed the male; Coletti drove away, and no injuries were reported, says the statement.
But the shooter hit the male’s truck, police said.
Officers worked to clear the area and spoke to several witnesses. They learned that Coletti was driving a light-colored Chevy Tahoe, and they circulated the description on the police radio.
A Laramie County Sheriff’s Deputy recognized the Tahoe near the intersection of College Drive and Walterscheid Boulevard, the statement says.
The deputy tried to conduct a traffic stop but Coletti drove away, then accelerated to a high rate of speed, the police department wrote. Deputies gave chase.
The statement says he drove “recklessly” by running a red light and crashing into a car that was driving through the intersection of West Lincolnway and Central Avenue.
The people in that vehicle didn’t report serious injuries and refused medical care, says the statement.
Coletti sped down Lincolnway. The pursuit ended west of town when a wheel fell off his Tahoe, the statement adds.
Officers arrested Coletti and booked him into the Laramie County Detention Center on suspicion of attempted first-degree murder, fleeing and neglecting his duty to stop after a crash, the statement says.
In Wyoming, attempted first-degree murder is punishable by life in prison.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
