BRAINTREE, MASS. (WHDH) - An 18-year-old Medford man is facing a slew of criminal charges after authorities say he hit a Braintree police officer with his car, struck a cruiser, and crashed into a civilian vehicle while fleeing the scene of a robbery at South Shore Plaza on Wednesday night.
Officers responding to a report of an organized larceny attempt at the shopping mall on Granite Street shortly after 5 p.m. observed two suspects jump into an awaiting getaway car with an array of stolen merchandise in hand, according to Braintree police.
An officer who jumped in front of the vehicle and signaled it to stop was hit and knocked to the ground when the driver, later identified as 18-year-old Anthony Bynum, of Medford, allegedly accelerated rapidly in an attempt to escape capture.
The officer, whose name has not been released, was taken to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Bynum fled on Common Street, where officers continued to chase after him. During the pursuit, authorities said Bynum made contact with a Braintree police vehicle and then drove off.
The chase came to a crashing end when Bynum allegedly passed a motorist on the wrong side of the road and slammed into an oncoming SUV, leaving a 50-year-old man and a 51-year-old woman from Quincy with non-life-threatening injuries.
Bynum was arrested and taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
He is facing charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, operating to endanger, leaving the scene of a crash causing personal injury, operating with a suspended license, larceny over $1,200, failure to stay in marked lanes, failure to stop at a stop sign, and failure to stop for a police officer.
An arraignment date has not yet been set.
The two occupants in Bynum’s vehicle, a 15-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy, both of Brockton, have been charged with larceny over $1,200.
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