The News Room [News Release]

Sheriff Contact: John Roach: 313-213-5162
Release Date: Thursday, May 6, 2004

Alert Sheriff’s Deputy nabs drunken driver who hit two Inkster children and fled

INKSTER, Michigan – A Wayne County Sheriff’s Deputy stopped and apprehended a 22 year old Wayne resident who, moments before, allegedly hit and injured a seven year old Inkster boy and his 14-year old sister, according to Sheriff Warren Evans.

Matthew Van Ooyen, who has had three previous drunken driving convictions and was driving with a suspended license, had been drinking and driving at the time of his arrest. After the arrest, Van Ooyen was turned over to Inkster Police, Evans said.

Deputy Christopher Ceane was traveling on southbound Middlebelt near Cherry Hill at approximately 4:00 PM on Wednesday when he noticed a vehicle with significant damage pull onto Middlebelt and drive erratically. Being suspicious, the officer attempted to pull the car over, but the driver kept going. A couple of blocks later, at the intersection of Cherry Hill and Middlebelt, Van Ooyen rear-ended another vehicle, causing minor damage.

Ceane ran Van Ooyen’s license plate and discovered that the Inkster Police has issued a Be On the Lookout notice for a vehicle matching the description of the suspect’s car in connection with a hit-and-run involving two children at Harrison and Somerset in Inkster.

“Officer Ceane followed the first rule of police work: be observant,” said Evans. “Thanks to his alertness, he helped take a ticking time bomb off the streets.”

According to witnesses, Van Ooyen was traveling at a high rate of speed through the subdivision and hit the kids, who were on a bicycle at the time. The boy suffered a bumped head and a fat lip, while his sister received minor injuries to her left leg.

Evans said that taking people like Van Ooyen off the street has been a high priority for him as Sheriff. Last October, he created the Last Call unit, whose sole purpose is to track down and arrest repeat drunken drivers who fail to show for court. Since that time the unit has arrested nearly 500 offenders.

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