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Man arrested after suddenly reversing, hitting Salt Lake City police vehicle

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SALT LAKE CITY — A man was arrested for aggravated assault, among other charges, after he unexpectedly reversed his car into a Salt Lake City police officer's patrol vehicle while on duty, officials said.

The incident happened at 9:51 p.m. Monday near 400 South 200 West.

Jeffrey Doan, 54, was booked into jail and faces charges including Aggravated Assault, Possession of a Controlled Substance, Use or Possession of a Drug Paraphernalia and Having an Open Container of Alcohol in a Vehicle.

Police said the situation began when a car unexpectedly stopped in the middle of the road in front of an officer's patrol vehicle.

"After waiting a short period of time, to see if any pedestrians had crossed the road, or to see if the driver would continue, the officer honked to alert the driver to the green light," Salt Lake City Police said.

Without any warning, officials explained, Doan put the car in reverse and accelerated into the officer's patrol vehicle before driving a few feet forward and getting out of the car.

The officer ordered Doan to stop and other patrol officers responded to help with the incident. Doan was safely and promptly detained.

Arrest documents detail that officers found various drugs and alcohol in Doan's vehicle after a search.

"It is unclear of Doan’s motives, including whether he was trying to ambush the officer," police said in a statement.

Although the crash did cause damage to the patrol vehicle, the officer who was inside was not hurt, officials reported.