Man flees robbery, hits police cruiser before arrest

Officers reportedly found machete in car

A man spotted in a vehicle tied to a robbery struck a police cruiser in Enfield Tuesday after officers were able to deflate his tires during a pursuit that ended in his arrest when he was found with a machete in the vehicle.

Steven Pinto, 31, of no certain address was taken into custody on charges of engaging police in pursuit, illegal possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle, criminal mischief, sixth-degree larceny, interfering with an officer, criminal attempt to commit assault on an officer, reckless endangerment and multiple other motor vehicle violations, according to the Enfield Police Department.

Police said officers around 4:45 p.m. were alerted that a vehicle tied to a recent robbery was in the area of the Freshwater Commons Plaza. Police located the vehicle in the area of Big Y and found that the driver, identified as Pinto, had just committed a larceny at the grocery store.

Pinto fled the area in the vehicle, according to police. Police officers were able to deploy a tire deflation device and pop the vehicle’s tires as Pinto got onto Interstate 91 South, police said.

Police said Pinto struck an Enfield police cruiser multiple times as officers tried to stop him. According to police, he was seen reaching under the seat of the vehicle as he struck the cruiser.

Enfield police said they were assisted by Connecticut State Police in stopping the vehicle in the area of Exit 42 on I-91. Police reportedly found a large machete in Pinto’s vehicle before he was arrested.

No injuries were reported during the pursuit.

During the arrest, police found that Pinto was wanted on multiple warrants charging him with failure to appear in court on unrelated cases. He was held in custody pending an arraignment hearing on Wednesday in Hartford Superior Court.