On Saturday, May 30th, 2015 at 7:06 p.m. a Pinal County Sheriff’s K-9 Deputy was traveling westbound on Interstate 10 approaching mile marker 211. According to auhtorities, a Chevrolet Astro Van passed a fully marked K-9 patrol vehicle and then swerved out of its lane and committed other traffic violations.
The deputy ran a registration check on the vehicle and it returned as reported “stolen” out of the City of Glendale. The vehicle exited the Interstate at Sunshine Boulevard and turned northbound. When the driver saw the deputy behind him, he accelerated to a high rate of speed and a pursuit was initiated. The driver drove through a residential neighborhood at speeds of up to 45 mph. The vehicle came to a stop at the intersection of Penn Street and Beech Street in Eloy.
The driver of the van and the passenger both ran northbound from the vehicle. As deputies with the assistance of Eloy Police Officers set up a perimeter to search for the suspects, a citizen drove up and told the deputies he had picked up a man that asked for a ride and dropped him off at the “Pilot Truck Stop.” The description of the man he gave the ride to, matched the passenger who had run from the vehicle.
Deputies located the suspect at the truck stop, he was identified as James Szabo (age 22 of Phoenix). Szabo said that he was asleep in the van when the driver told him the “cops were chasing” them. He said when the van stopped, he ran because he had a felony warrant and “did not want to return to prison.” A records check showed he had an outstanding felony warrant for “Failure to Appear” regarding the original offense of Possession of Dangerous Drugs.
A second citizen contacted a deputy and told him a subject was hiding under the trampoline in his backyard in the 200 block of East Ash Street, Eloy. Deputies responded to the backyard and located the driver of the vehicle who was now on the roof of the home. The suspect saw the K-9 and decided it would be a good time to surrender.
He was taken into custody without incident.
The suspect identified himself as “Andrew Dillon” age 22. A records check was not able to confirm his identification. The suspect was fingerprinted and it was discovered his real name was Cory Sasnett (age 28). Sasnett claimed he was a “transient.”
Sheriff Paul Babeu stated, “Cory Sasnett had 3 felony warrants out of the Maricopa County Superior Court for his arrest and had been arrested 34 prior times for various crimes. Sasnett was booked into the Pinal County Sheriff’s Jail for the felony warrants and new charges of Unlawful Flight, Possession of a Stolen Vehicle and False Reporting to a Law Enforcement Officer. Sasnett told the deputies, ‘wouldn’t you run if you were looking at prison time.’ While criminals may think they can run and get away, usually it only results in them going to jail tired.”
The three felony warrants were for Failure to Appear regarding a past Stolen Vehicle case, Possession of Narcotic Equipment case and Possession of Dangerous Drugs case.