GRAY, Maine — A Plymouth man accused of driving carelessly and crashing into multiple cars Friday died shortly after a police pursuit was called off on Route 26 near Cumberland County.
At approximately 8:28 p.m., officials with Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and Androscoggin Sheriff’s Office were trying to find the driver of a 2023 Chevrolet Trailblazer that was reportedly driving in a “careless and reckless manner” near the casino on Route 26, Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Naldo Gagnon said Saturday in a news release.
Gagnon said officers with the Androscoggin Sheriff’s Office and the Oxford Police Department caught up with the driver, whom they later identified as 30-year-old Nicholas Leibowitz, but they said he refused to stop and continued driving recklessly through multiple towns.
While officials with Androscoggin County Sheriff's Office and Oxford police tried to stop Leibowitz, he reportedly drove over 90 miles per hour southbound on Route 26 toward New Gloucester, crashed in Poland, and nearly hit a Cumberland County sheriff's deputy head-on, according to Gagnon.
Officials with the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office were requested to deploy spikes by Oxford police to stop the driver, near the Maine State Police Barracks in Gray, but they said it was too late.
Leibowitz crashed into another driver on Shaker Road in the area of Spiro Avenue in Gray before crashing into a telephone pole and trees. His car then went airborne and rolled over several times, per the news release.
Gagnon said Leibowitz suffered life-threatening injuries and died at the scene.
Gagnon told NEWS CENTER Maine that Leibowitz officials found an injured dog nearby, which is being taken care of by the Gray animal control office.
Gagnon said the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office was not involved in the chase. Androscoggin Sheriff’s Office and Oxford Police Department called off the pursuit right before the crash.
Shaker Road near Spiro Avenue was shut down for hours while officials reconstructed the crash and CMP fixed the telephone pole.
The cause of the crash is being investigated. Police said speed appears to be a factor.