Man accused of wild chase from Cape Coral police ending in crash, $1K in damage

CAPE CORAL, Fla. —

A man was arrested after Cape Coral police said he drove recklessly, sped off from officers and caused approximately $1,000 worth of damage to city property.

An officer saw Christian James Decena, 20, driving at 55 mph in a 35-mph zone in the 600 block of Nicholas Parkway East on Wednesday at approximately 2:30 p.m., according to the Cape Coral Police Department.

CCPD said Decena refused to stop for the officer and fled westbound on Nicholas Parkway, running a red light at the intersection with Santa Barbara Boulevard before crashing.

The silver Kia sedan that Decena was driving hit the center median and a traffic sign. Decena then drove the wrong way in the southbound lanes of Santa Barbara Blvd., according to CCPD.

Officers located the vehicle with front-end damage near the intersection of SW 3rd Avenue and SW 8th Street. Officers found Decena at the scene examining the vehicle's damage and detained him.

According to the police department, officers discovered the vehicle was unregistered and bore a license plate that was registered to a different vehicle.

Decena was arrested and taken to the Lee County Jail. He is facing charges of fleeing to elude law enforcement with property damage, leaving the scene of a crash involving property damage and operating an unregistered vehicle.

He was also cited for going 55 mph in a 35 mph zone and for failure to obey a steady red light.

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