Vehicle with stolen licence plate strikes 2 police cars, crashes into tree in Lafontaine Park: SPVM

Driver smashes into SPVM cars Police say he was driving a car with a stolen license plate and is facing impaired driving charges.

The driver of a vehicle that had a stolen licence plate struck two police cruisers before crashing into a tree in Lafontaine Park Friday afternoon, Montreal police (SPVM) said.

At around 4 p.m., patrol officers tried to intercept the vehicle near the intersection of de la Roche and Rachel streets. The vehicle fled, damaging the two police vehicles in the process, though the officers were not injured.

The vehicle continued to flee and ended up hitting a tree inside the park.

A 27-year-old man was arrested on driving while impaired by drugs charges, according to Montreal police spokesperson Véronique Dubuc. He was not injured but was taken to hospital as a precaution.

"The most important thing is that nobody was injured by this event," Dubuc said.

The suspect is not known to police.

Investigators are examining the events that led to the crash and trying to determine if the vehicle was also stolen.