Norwalk man charged with racing on I-95, fleeing state trooper, officials say

NORWALK — A Norwalk man is facing a slew of traffic offenses for allegedly racing another motorist on Interstate 95 and speeding away from a state trooper who tried to pull him over Sunday, officials said.

Jake Palmer, 20, was charged with engaging police in a pursuit, reckless driving, racing on a limited access highway, second-degree reckless endangerment and interfering with a police officer in connection with the incident, according to the Connecticut State Police.

State police officials said in a new release Monday that a Bridgeportbased trooper responded around 8:36 p.m. to the interstate after the Milford Police Department received information that vehicles were racing on the northbound lanes.

The responding trooper, officials said, then located two BMWs traveling faster than 90 miles per hour and weaving in and out of traffic near exit 44. The troopers attempted to stop the vehicles, but when the officer activated their lights and sirens, a blue BMW sped away in an apparent attempt to elude police.

“The trooper observed the blue BMW cutting in and out of the flow of traffic, maneuvering across multiple lanes and narrowly avoiding collisions in doing so,” state police officials said in the release.

Officials said the trooper terminated the pursuit in the interest of safety, but managed to obtain enough information to determine the vehicle, a 2016 BMW 340i, was registered to a Norwalk resident.

The trooper then spoke with the vehicle owner, who told police they would instruct the person in possession of the vehicle to contact authorities. Around 9:30 a.m., Palmer arrived at a state police building and verbally admitted to operating the BMW at the time of the traffic stop, officials said.

Officials said Palmer was then charged in connection with the incident. They said he was released on $5,000 cash bond and is scheduled to be arraigned in state Superior Court in New Haven on March 12.