YARMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS — Shortly after the bars closed this morning, an alleged hit-and-run driver crashed into another vehicle in the area of Route 28, fled the scene, clipped trees and a utility pole, and was tracked to a beachside home in South Yarmouth where police say he was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.

Yarmouth Police dispatched two patrol officers to the area of Route 28 eastbound near Willow Street after a caller reported being struck by a vehicle that failed to stop. The victim was actively following the fleeing car as it turned onto Willow Street in South Yarmouth.

The suspect vehicle then reportedly struck a tree but kept going, racing toward the Smuggler’s Beach area at a high rate of speed. The caller eventually lost sight of it, last seeing the car traveling westbound on South Shore Drive, and provided a partial license plate to dispatch. Additional Yarmouth units flooded the neighborhood.

Officers met the victim, who had pulled into a nearby parking lot, and obtained a fuller description: a black Lexus RX 350 bearing Massachusetts registration 333D. The victim reported the Lexus had also struck multiple trees and a utility pole while fleeing.

Police began checking nearby streets and beach parking lots. The vehicle was registered to an address in Watertown. Further checks revealed the registered owner also listed a South Yarmouth address at 5 Syritha’s Way — just off South Shore Drive and across from South Middle Beach.

Moments later, officers located the damaged Lexus parked at that exact address. A Barnstable County Sheriff’s Crime Scene Unit member was called to photograph the damaged Lexus. The front license plate was missing, and officers searched the surrounding area for the plate and any related crash debris.

Police encountered the suspected driver at the Syritha’s Way residence. Sources say he was arrested on suspicion of operating under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of a crash, and negligent operation of a motor vehicle.

The investigation remains active. Hyannis News spoke with police sources as the investigation and report were still being finalized. HN expects to provide official details on the suspect and formal charges after Monday’s arraignment.

HN Reminder: The initial details contained in the above report are based on radio transmissions and information from police sources. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

ADDITIONAL HN PHOTOS FROM THE OVERNIGHT:

ABOVE: “Kids will be kids.” Barnstable Police received complaints and began monitoring roughly 100 teens and young adults in the Craigville Beach area last evening who were apparently looking for a place to have a bonfire. One officer stopped a truck loaded with wood pallets (which make excellent bonfire fuel). Moments later, officers spotted a small fire on Craigville Beach, and the Centerville-Osterville-Marstons Mills Fire Department sent an engine that quickly extinguished it. While kids may have gotten away with beach bonfires 50 years ago, today’s Cape Cod is densely populated, and towns enforce strict rules against setting fires on public beaches. (HN NOTE: Being a member of the last truly free generation here on Cape Cod, I would hate to be a “kid” these days… and I wish we could somehow go back in time… but we all know that’s impossible, unfortunately. Please keep our younger generations in your thoughts and prayers.)

PEDESTRIAN STRUCK ON MAIN STREET…

ABOVE: Barnstable Police and a Hyannis Fire Department ambulance crew responded to the intersection of Main Street and Old Colony Road last evening for a report of a pedestrian struck by a vehicle. A woman was up and able to walk into a waiting ambulance when HN arrived on scene. She was later transported to Cape Cod Hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening. The driver of the involved vehicle remained on scene and cooperated with police. The Barnstable Police Department is investigating the cause of the accident.

P.S. – Today’s Hytown Vignette is brought to you by Ten Years After…

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