State police have arrested a man who is accused of driving the wrong way on Interstate 691, driving into oncoming traffic and hitting a Toyota RAV4 head-on, injuring a 50-year-old Wallingford woman and the 20-year-old Wallingford woman who was also in the vehicle, according to state police.
The two women in the vehicle that was struck sustained minor injuries and were transported to Midstate Medical Center, state police said.
State police said it happened on I-691 in Meriden just before 8 p.m. on Wednesday.
They identified the wrong-way driver as 25-year-old Cequan Goodman, of Meriden.
State police said Meriden police had been pursuing Goodman before the crash. Meriden police said they had been pursuing a vehicle and called off the pursuit because it could have endangered the public.
Goodman was charged with reckless driving, driving with a suspended license, driving the wrong way on a highway and failure to maintain proper lane.
He was released on a $10,000 bond to the custody of Meriden police, according to state police.
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Meriden police said they responded to a report of shots fired the area of Crown Street at 7:40 p.m. and saw two people shooting at each other. When officers approached the two people, they began to flee, police said.
One ran to the back of 245 Crown Street toward South Colony Street and the other got into a blue Chevy Malibu. Meriden police said officers tried to stop the Chevy, but the driver sped off and fled the scene.
Officers started to pursue the vehicle until determining that continuing the chase could endanger to public and the people are at large and have not been identified, according to police.
As officers responded to assist, they learned of a wrong-way driver on I-691.
Meriden police said the vehicle was going west on the eastbound side of I-691, between Broad Street and Center Street.
As officers entered the highway, the driver sped by officers and collided with an oncoming vehicle, according to Meriden police.
Officers approached the scene and identified the driver as Goodman, who they said was wanted on several felony warrants. He was given medical care for injuries sustained from the collision.
Police Goodman has been a person of interest in several of the recent acts of violence in Meriden.
He has been charged with criminal possession of ammunition and several counts of failure to appear.
Meriden police said Midstate Medical Center contacted them at 10:32 p.m. that a man with a gunshot wound to the chest had been transported to the hospital and his injuries were not life-threatening.
Police said they have not determined where he sustained the injuries and they are investigating and asked for video surveillance that might have been recorded by home security systems and for witnesses to have not reported the incident to contact the Meriden Police Department or the Major Crime Tip Line. Anyone with information can email Detective Jon Femia at jfemia@meridenct.gov or call 203-630-6219 or email Detective David Visconti at dvisconti@meridenct.gov or call 203-630-6252.
