Drunk Driver Gives Fake Name, Runs from Cops, Police Say

A drunk driver who gave a fake name to an Evesham Township officer after being stopped early Saturday morning on Route 70 took off speeding, got in a crash and was eventually arrested after being found passed out in her car, police said.

Gisell Cruz, 27, was driving recklessly when an officer stopped her around 2:45 a.m. Saturday, police said, and lied about her identity while pulled over. When the officer went to try to get her real name, Cruz took off speeding, police said, and the officer broke off a pursuit because of concerns over public safety.

Other officers joined in the search for Cruz, locating wreckage from her car at the scene of a crash on Locust Avenue near Maple Avenue, police said, and eventually found her about an hour after the initial car stop, parked in the lot at the Nieuw Amsterdam Apartments off Maple Avenue.

Cruz, who was passed out in the driver's seat of the car, was still “highly intoxicated,” police said, and was arrested without further incident.

She was charged with second-degree eluding police, fourth-degree hindering apprehension and driving while intoxicated, and was taken to the Burlington County Jail in default of $30,000 full cash bail.