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Witness recounts driver dragging officer with car before fatal high-speed chase in Ogden

Posted at 10:14 AM, Mar 31, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-01 09:36:28-04

The Ogden Police Department has identified the man who injured an officer Friday night during a high-speed chase that ended in the suspect’s death.

Police say 24-year-old Jacob Erebia lost control of his car and crashed into a traffic pole on 23rd Street and Wall Avenue.

Witnesses said the chase began about a mile south of that intersection, at a local gas station.

Jacob Codlatain, who saw Erebia being pulled over at the gas station, said he suspected something dangerous might happen because of the look in the suspect’s eyes.

“I was just like, ‘No, no, he’s not actually going to do it, is he?’” Codlatain described. “As soon as he ran, I was like, ‘Oh my God. He’s actually doing it!’”

One of the officers initially tried to stop Erebia, but the suspect found a way back into the car and took off, dragging the officer.

The officer let go and suffered minor injuries.

“He realized he was about to be dragged into oncoming traffic,” Codlatain said. “I would just say mad props for actually having the courage to reach in there and allow yourself to be dragged.”

Erebia’s family members spent Saturday at the intersection of the crash crying over the debris left behind. They didn’t defend his decision to run away from the police, but said they understand what may have been going through his mind. Erebia was the father of two young children.

“It is still sad for them,” Codlatain said. “They didn’t do anything wrong.”