CRAIG — Craig police say what started as dinner and drinks at a local Mexican restaurant Wednesday evening ended in a domestic violence incident and a police pursuit through the city of Craig.
According to arrest records, Devon Gonzales, 36, of Craig, was arrested Wednesday on felony charges of second-degree kidnapping, false imprisonment, vehicular eluding, violation of bail bond conditions, and misdemeanor charges of reckless driving, reckless endangerment, eluding a police officer, driving under the influence, and crime of violation of a restraining order.
In an arrest affidavit obtained Thursday, Craig Police Department personnel said they responded about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday to the area of Yampa Avenue and East Victory Way due to a rolling domestic violence call in which a caller reported the victim was trying to get out of a red Dodge truck.
Police said as they were responding to the area, an officer spotted the truck near the bypass at Moffat County Road 183 and Moffat County Road 7 and said the victim in question was getting out of the red Dodge truck. As officers approached the vehicle, however, police said the driver stepped on the gas and began a police pursuit that took them north on Moffat County Road 31 through dirt roads and eventually onto Colorado Highway 13 southbound back into the city of Craig.
With the driver of the red truck still fleeing at high speeds into the Craig city limits, police said they ended the chase.
“At this point, we were unable to catch up to the red Dodge truck and it was determined to terminate pursuing the red Dodge truck due to safety concerns to the public,” the affidavit said.
Back in the area where the victim had exited the truck before it fled, police had interviewed the victim, who told police they were hungry and accompanied Gonzales to a local Mexican restaurant where workers told police the two had several alcoholic beverages before getting into a fight. The victim told police they left the restaurant on foot, but Gonzales caught up to the victim in his truck and the victim willingly entered his truck so he could take the victim home.
Before leaving to catch up with the victim, police said Gonzales left his credit/debit card at the restaurant to pay the check, which police later found.
About an hour after police received their initial call, the affidavit said police received information the red Dodge truck was at an address in Craig. When police responded, they found Gonzales and questioned him about what happened Wednesday, but he seemed less than forthcoming.
At first, police said Gonzales denied he had met with the victim and claimed he was supposed to have gone on a blind date with a woman by another name. But upon further questioning from police, they said Gonzales admitted he was not supposed to be with the alleged victim due to a restraining order and proclaimed the alleged victim “might be a shape-shifter.”
After placing Gonzales under arrest, police said they checked Colorado’s courts database and found Gonzales “has multiple open cases he is out on bond for,” according to the affidavit. At least one of those cases filed in October 2018 was a felony strangulation charge involving the same victim.
According to Moffat County combined court staff, Gonzales was booked into the Moffat County Jail Wednesday, May 1 and appeared Thursday, May 2 before Judge Shelley Hill who gave Gonzales $20,000 cash or surety bond. Gonzales is scheduled to appear before Judge Sandra Gardner’s Moffat County Court No. 2 at 8:30 a.m. May 14.