TROY, NY - On the evening of November 5th, a routine traffic stop in Watervliet escalated into a dangerous chase, ending in a fiery multi-vehicle crash in Troy. The incident began when a Watervliet police officer identified a vehicle with stolen license plates and attempted to pull it over. Although the driver initially complied, he suddenly fled at high speed, recklessly racing toward Troy.

Out of concern for public safety, Watervliet police officers decided to terminate the pursuit. However, moments later, the fleeing vehicle collided with multiple occupied vehicles, including a CDTA bus near 5^th Avenue and River Street and at the intersection of Federal and 6th Avenues in Troy. The crash caused significant damage and brought traffic to a dead stop as cars were all over the intersection. Police units made their way to the scene and took one person into custody.

Firefighters from the Troy Fire Department at Central station just down the street, heard the loud crash and made their way outside to investigate. They discovered the crash, including a vehicle on fire. Members of the fire department immediately responded with Truck 2, the Rescue Squad, Medic 4, and the Battalion Chief.

Upon arrival, firefighters from the Rescue Squad quickly pulled a hand line and knocked down the car fire, while other members assessed and checked on the occupants of the vehicles involved in the crash. Troy firefighters remained on the scene to mitigate hazards and manage the incident until a tow company arrived to remove the damaged vehicles.

The driver, identified as 21-year-old Bahelanya Mnyomoelwa of Albany, was taken into custody at the scene. He now faces numerous charges. In Watervliet, he has been charged with criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, unlawful fleeing of a police officer in a motor vehicle in the third degree, reckless driving, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the second degree (for having three or more suspensions on separate dates), operating an unregistered motor vehicle on a highway, operating a motor vehicle without insurance, failure to obey a police officer, and two equipment violations: inadequate lights and non-transparent side windows. In Troy, Mnyomoelwa faces additional charges for leaving the scene of a property damage accident and two citations for passing a red traffic signal. The driver was released with a court date for the tickets he had received.