A Schuylkill County woman who police say fled a traffic stop in Tamaqua and crashed into a building in December, causing nearly $29,000 in damage, was found to have marijuana in her system at the time of the crash.
Esmeralda Figueroa, 22, of Mahanoy City, is accused of driving 65-70 mph while fleeing police on Dec. 7, before striking a guardrail and crashing into a building on Pine St.
Police say they initially spotted Figueroa’s black Honda Civic stopped at a green light at the five-point intersection of Center and E. Broad streets for up to a minute while she looked at a cell phone.
When the vehicle began moving north, police followed. The car accelerated and drove into the opposite lane of travel through the intersection of Mauch Chunk and Pine streets, according to police.
Police say they activated their emergency lights and siren, but Figueroa did not stop. The vehicle reached speeds of 65-70 mph before striking a guardrail twice in the 500 block of Pine St., bouncing off, and crashing into a building in the 600 block of Pine St., police say.
Figueroa and a female passenger were detained. Police say they found a red-and-white striped handbag on the passenger floorboard containing suspected marijuana, a grinder, and rolling papers. Figueroa told police, “yes everything is mine,” and admitted to ingesting marijuana about an hour prior, police say. Police also learned she did not have a valid driver’s license.
The passenger, who police say was not wearing a seatbelt, was taken to a hospital for a possible head injury.
Figueroa was taken to a hospital for a blood draw. Toxicology results later showed the presence of active and inactive marijuana metabolites in her system, police say.
The crash caused $28,866.28 in damage to the building, according to police. When police repeatedly asked Figueroa for vehicle insurance information in the following weeks, she allegedly responded, “Why do they need my insurance? They are fixing the building without it.”
Figeruoa is facing a felony charge of fleeing police, misdemeanor counts of DUI, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia, and several summary traffic offenses.
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