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01/19/2013 10:27 PM

Driver Ticketed Following Store Crash

By: YNN Staff

Driver Ticketed Following Store Crash
It was a case of quick instincts on the job. Two Rochester police officers were sitting on the corner of East Main Street and Winton Road when they saw a vehicle speed by.

Officers Giovanni Maldonado and Michael Dipoala were right across the street from Epicurean Treasures, a small home furnishing store attached to an apartment.

"From where we were, it was a blur he was going really fast," said Rochester police officer Giovani Maldonado.

A white BMW traveling east along Main Street crashed into the store's entrance.

"We didn't hear any brakes. It was just crash," said Maldonado.

The driver, 37-year-old Demitris Dennis from Rochester and the passenger, Ashley Black, were inside the vehicle.

"It was literally fifteen feet into the building," he said.

Two residents in the upstairs apartment told officers the car had hit their furnace. That's when the officers sprung to action.

"While my partner Mike tried to turn off the car, the car ignited," said Maldonado.

The officers were able to get the man and woman safely out of the car. The upstairs' residents and multiple dogs were helped down a ladder by Rochester firefighters.

"We reacted, we didn't think about anything. All I thought about was getting everyone out of their safe and each other out safe," he said.

Dennis was ticketed for having a suspended license and speeding. Preliminary reports show alcohol was not a factor. The cause of the crash is unknown. No other charges are expected at this time.

The driver and passenger are being treated at Rochester General Hospital for what's described as non-life threatening injuries.