Woman allegedly smoked meth, stole truck, backed into a police vehicle

• Angeline Tom, 42, is accused of felony counts of vehicle theft and aggravated assault upon a peace officer along with misdemeanor counts including DWI and resisting arrest.
• She did not have legal representation on the afternoon of April 22.
• The defendant’s preliminary hearing is set for the morning of May 5 in Farmington Magistrate Court.

FARMINGTON — A woman accused of stealing a vehicle after smoking narcotics allegedly backed the truck into a Farmington police vehicle, causing officers to jump away to avoid being hit.

Angeline Tom, 42, is accused of felony counts of vehicle theft and aggravated assault upon a peace officer along with misdemeanor counts including DWI and resisting arrest, according to court records.

She did not have legal representation on the afternoon of April 22. No city of residence was listed in court records.

A Farmington Police Department officer was dispatched around 5:22 a.m. on April 17 to the 400 block of East Comanche Street on reports of a stolen vehicle.

A man told police around 5 a.m. he went out into the apartment complex parking lot to warm up his vehicle and, when he returned 15 minutes later, it had been stolen.

Police officers searched for the stolen vehicle. It was around 6:21 a.m. that an officer spotted the red truck in the area of Brookside Park.

The vehicle, which records indicate was driven by Tom, allegedly would not stop for police as they attempted traffic stops. Tom is accused of driving well below the speed limit at times and also of driving over curbs as police tried to stop the vehicle

Officers who tried to stop the vehicle said that they had to disengage multiple times as they believed Tom might crash the vehicle or drive into oncoming traffic, according to court documents.

The vehicle eventually was returned to the apartment complex parking lot from which it was reported stolen. Officers parked their patrol vehicles behind the truck, trying to block it in.

One officer was trying to place stop sticks behind the truck when Tom allegedly put the vehicle into reverse and accelerated quickly, crashing into the front bumper of a patrol vehicle, a court document stated. Two officers leapt out of the way to avoid being hit by the vehicle. Officers approached the vehicle and ordered Tom out of the truck, but she allegedly refused.

The driver’s side window was then broken so officers could unlock the door and pull Tom out the vehicle.

Tom admitted to smoking meth before stealing the vehicle and also refused to provide a blood sample to officers, the documents stated.

She was examined by paramedics then booked into the San Juan County Adult Detention Center. Tom was released from the county jail on April 20.

The defendant’s preliminary hearing is set for the morning of May 5 in Farmington Magistrate Court.

Joshua Kellogg covers breaking news for The Daily Times. He can be reached at 505-564-4627 or via email at jkellogg@daily-times.com.

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