BOSTON, Oct. 21, 2015—A man who struck a Boston Police officer with a stolen police cruiser two years ago has been sentenced to more than a decade in prison, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said today.

WILFREDO RODRIGUEZ (D.O.B. 10/20/75) today pleaded guilty to charges of armed assault with intent to murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, larceny of a motor vehicle, negligent operation, leaving the scene of an accident causing personal injury, resisting arrest, larceny over $250, larceny under $250, and two counts of breaking and entering a motor vehicle in the nighttime with intent to commit a felony.  Suffolk Superior Court Judge Peter Krupp sentenced Rodriguez to 10 to 12 years in state prison, which will run concurrently with a five-year sentence he is currently serving after he violated the terms of his probation on an earlier larceny case.

Had the case proceeded to trial, Assistant District Attorney Ryan Mingo of the DA’s Major Felony Bureau would have presented evidence and testimony to prove that officers responded to a report of a man, later identified as Rodriguez, breaking into a vehicle in the area of Baxter Street in South Boston shortly before 4:00 a.m. on Oct. 5, 2013.

Rodriguez was observed exiting an E Street yard and was pursued on foot by an officer.  Rodriguez ignored police orders to stop and instead entered an unattended Boston Police cruiser.  He refused additional orders to exit the vehicle and, the evidence would show, accelerated forward, striking the pursuing officer as she stood in front of the vehicle.  She was thrown over the cruiser, causing her to strike her head on the ground.

Additional officers used their cruisers to block Rodriguez’s escape; however, he reversed the cruiser in the direction of the injured officer and narrowly missed her as she rolled between parked vehicles, the evidence showed.  He then drove forward once again and fled the area.

Rodriguez ultimately crashed the cruiser into a barrier at the JFK/UMass MBTA station as he fled at a high rate of speed from pursuing officers.  He was taken into custody as he attempted to flee the scene on foot.

During the course of their investigation, officers determined that Rodriguez had broken into a silver Mercedes Benz on Baxter Street and a blue Jeep Grand Cherokee parked on E Street.  Several items stolen from the Mercedes were located inside the Jeep, including a North Face backpack, an iPod, headphones, and sneakers.  Items stolen from the Jeep included a Red Sox ticket and $20.

At the time of his arrest, Rodriguez was on probation for a 2012 conviction for larceny over $250.

Erin O’Connor was the DA’s assigned victim-witness advocate.  Rodriguez was represented by Kelly Cusack.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.