Jun 6, 2016 2 min read

A New Mexico man was arrested by state police after he allegedly grabbed the wheel of a car being driven by another man and caused it to crash on Route 844 (Jefferson Avenue) Friday night.

Xavier D. Wilson, 30, of Albuquerque, was charged with three counts each of criminal mischief and reckless endangerment and one count of risking a catastrophe.

Police responded about 7:30 p.m. after receiving a report of a vehicle into a pole with wires on the road. The driver, Gregory Benner, told state police he was driving west when he made a comment to Wilson, who was a passenger, that he was not afraid to die. Benner told police Wilson grabbed the steering wheel and pulled it to the right.

Benner said he lost control of the vehicle, which then crossed the center line and crashed into the utility pole. The vehicle traveled another 30 feet before stopping in a yard at 3810 Jefferson. Police said the crash into the first pole caused damage to a second pole on the opposite side of the road. A mailbox also was damaged.

Police said two other people, including a boy, were in the vehicle with Benner and Wilson when it crashed.

Wilson was arraigned before District Judge Ethan Ward and placed in Washington County jail on $25,000 bond. He faces a June 21 preliminary hearing before Ward.