Scarsdale Woman Injured In High-Speed Chase

A Scarsdale woman was injured when a high-speed chase through Putnam County ended in a crash on Interstate 84. She was a passenger in a car that had been reported stolen in the Bronx.

The chase began at 12:17 p.m. April 8 when Putnam County Sheriff's Deputy Amanda Collier received word that a stolen 2006 grey Acura was traveling northbound on the Taconic State Parkway. That came as a result of a license plate reader hit that generated a notification to law enforcement agencies in the region.

Collier positioned herself on the parkway overpass at Bryant Pond Road. Roughly eight minutes later, seeing the car traveling north on the Taconic, she entered the parkway and began following it, getting verification from the NYPD that the car was indeed reported stolen.

When Collier activated her emergency lights and sirens, the driver started to slow, and then moved left and sped up. The car exited and reentered the Taconic and finally ended up on I-84. Still traveling above the speed limit, the driver attempted to get off at the Ludingtonville Road exit. The car went through the grass, struck the guide rail and flipped three times, finally coming to rest on its roof in the right eastbound lane of I-84.

The driver was identified as Brandon Scott Cohn of the Bronx. He was charged with Reckless Endangerment in the 1st Degree (Felony), Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the 3rd Degree (Felony), Unlawful Fleeing a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle 3rd Degree (Misdemeanor), Reckless Driving (Misdemeanor) and various vehicle and traffic law charges.

The 27-year-old did not appear to have sustained any injuries in the crash, police said. He was arraigned and released to appear in court on a later date.

The only other occupant of the vehicle was 27-year old Toniann Orichello of Scarsdale. Orichello was transported to a nearby hospital with what appeared to be non-serious injuries and was given an appearance ticket to appear in court on a later date.

The owner of the vehicle, a 59-year-old woman from the Bronx, was notified and advised on how to proceed regarding the accident report and contacting her insurance company, police said.