A man involved in a wild police chase in State College last November will be off the streets for quite awhile.
On Thursday, 28-year-old Daniel Zenaghebriel pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, theft, attempting to elude police, criminal mischief, and reckless endangerment. He was sentenced to 4 to 8 years in state prison.
On November 2, 2012, Zenaghebriel stole a Chevy Uplander from the Harrisburg area. He was spotted the next day on Hillcrest Avenue in State College by a pair of newspaper delivery drivers. After being confronted by the drivers, Zenaghebriel quickly drove away and police were called.
When officers tried to stop the stolen vehicle, Zenaghebriel jumped out while the car was still moving and fled the scene on foot. The driverless car slammed into a tree. Minutes later authorities saw Zenaghebriel driving off in a second vehicle; this time a stolen Ford pickup truck.
Zenaghebriel eventially collided with a Penn State Police car on Hillcrest Avenue but that did not end the chase. Zenaghebriel later crashed into a house on North Hills Place.
Again, Zenaghebriel managed to run away. He was finally found walking down North Atherton Street. When confronted, he couldn’t explain what he was doing in State College.
In addition to his prison sentence, Zenaghbriel was ordered to pay restitution.
“This defendant endangered not only the officers that stand and protect us, but our neighbors and neighborhoods and we are pleased with the sentence,” District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller said in a news release.
