Teenager Accused of Striking Officer with Car in Reckless Act
In a shocking incident, a 19-year-old named Frederick Raphael Mayorga stands accused of intentionally ramming his car into police officer Sgt. Patrick Kepp, causing severe injuries. The incident occurred around 3:45 a.m. on a Wednesday, as Sgt. Kepp was stationed on the side of Interstate 270 North in Maryland, deploying stop sticks in an attempt to stop Mayorga's Dodge Challenger.
Sgt. Kepp, who has served in the police department since February 2014, suffered the loss of both his legs due to the collision, as revealed by Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones in a press conference.
Mayorga had a history of attempting to provoke police officers into chasing him. On this occasion, he was spotted engaging in reckless driving behaviors, including doing doughnuts, weaving in and out of traffic, and reaching speeds of up to 110 miles per hour. Despite these actions, the officers chose not to pursue him and instead positioned themselves along the interstate from Clarksburg to Rockville.
It wasn't until Mayorga's dangerous driving almost caused another vehicle to veer off the road that the officers resorted to deploying stop sticks. "He intentionally struck Sgt. Kepp in the main lanes of I-270," Chief Jones stated. Mayorga continued his high-speed journey until his vehicle was finally disabled by the stop sticks, placed by another officer. Mayorga was apprehended near Clarksburg Road.
Mayorga now faces serious charges, including attempted first-degree murder, with a bond hearing scheduled for Thursday.
Sgt. Kepp, who is a member of the Alcohol Initiative Unit, had previously arrested Mayorga on May 26 for multiple traffic violations, including driving at an astonishing speed of 136 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour zone on I-270.
Describing Mayorga's actions, Chief Jones noted that he intentionally baited officers into pursuing him, as if it were some sort of video game. In addition to this case, Mayorga also has pending charges for "serious traffic violations," including driving without a license.