Contributed Photo/Courtesy GCSO: Roosevelt Kitchen was booked into the jail on charges of reckless driving and unlawful flight from pursuing law enforcement after leading police on a chase speeding through Safford.
Claims passenger coerced him to flee
By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – Roosevelt Kitchen, 34, was arrested and booked into the Graham County Adult Detention Facility in the late evening of Feb. 29 on charges of reckless driving and unlawful flight from pursuing law enforcement. An additional aggravated DUI charge is pending blood test analysis and review by prosecutors.
Kitchen reportedly led police on a high-speed chase after an officer attempted to pull him over at about 11:17 p.m. when the officer noticed Kitchen was driving his truck on U.S. Highway 70 without its headlights illuminated.
According to the police report, Kitchen fled from the officer and ran several stop signs while speeding down residential roads through Safford.
In the 400 block of E. 9th Street, the truck slowed down and a passenger fled from the vehicle. The officer identified the passenger as Robert Lee Sandoval, 29, who previously ran from officers into oncoming traffic on U.S. Highway 70 on Jan. 21 in an attempt to avoid being picked up on a warrant regarding a shoplifting charge. A summons was issued for Sandoval on Feb. 12 regarding a separate shoplifting case and another summons was issued Feb. 27 regarding a possession of drug paraphernalia charge.
After Sandoval reportedly fled from the truck, officers attempted to locate him but were unsuccessful. However, a short while later, the truck was located outside a residence at 311 E. Relation St. and an officer advised he had the driver, Kitchen, held at gunpoint and that a female passenger, identified as Christina Sandoval, had fled into the residence. According to the report, Robert Sandoval is known to reside at the house and Christina is his sister.
During questioning, Kitchen said that Sandoval got into his truck without his permission while he was at the Circle K across the street from Firth Park and forced him to drive at knifepoint. He said when the officer attempted to pull over, Sandoval told him to keep going or he would kill him. He said he stopped where he did because his truck began to break down. A fixed-blade knife was later found in the back seat of the truck during a vehicle inventory.
The officer advised Kitchen that he didn’t believe his story and questioned if that was the case why he continued to flee after Sandoval left the truck. The officer also found it suspicious that Kitchen had traveled across 1st Avenue onto a dirt road and happened to break down outside of the Sandoval residence.
Kitchen was then placed under arrest and the truck was removed by Nuttall’s Towing and placed on a 30-day impound.
Kitchen allegedly also admitted to smoking marijuana earlier in the day and was given field sobriety tests, which he did not perform well. He was then advised he was also under arrest for aggravated DUI.
Kitchen declined consent for a blood draw but a warrant was granted and a sample was taken for testing purposes. DUI charges are pending the test results.
Kitchen was then taken to jail and booked on charges of reckless driving and unlawful flight from pursuing law enforcement.
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