SAN FRANCISCO—On Wednesday, June 17, the SFDA’s office announced that Edward Lugo, 57, after a trial by jury for transporting methamphetamine and leading police on a high-speed pursuit through the evening rush hour commute. He was convicted of two counts of evading a police officer (VC 2800.2), one count of evading a police officer while driving on the opposite side of the road (VC 2800.4), one count of felon in possession of a firearm (PC 29800(a)), one count of possessing a controlled substance while armed with a firearm (HS 11370.1), one count of transporting a controlled Substance for sale (HS 11379), and two counts of hit and run (VC 20002).
The jury also found true that the defendant was personally armed with a firearm while transporting a Controlled Substance for Sale (PC 12022(c)).
According to the testimony and evidence presented at trial, on January 8, officers with the San Francisco Police Department tried to pull Lugo over for driving without his headlights on in the area of Sixth Street and Market Street. In response, the defendant fled the scene driving at approximately 50 miles per hour, nearly twice the speed limit, and ran three red lights, prompting the officers to terminate the pursuit.
A few minutes later, a second SFPD unit tried to pull the defendant over at which point the defendant fled again, driving several blocks southbound on Franklin Street, against traffic. A third SFPD unit then pursued Lugo as he drove southbound on Van Ness Avenue. During the third pursuit, the suspect ultimately lost control of the vehicle and crashed into two vehicles on South Van Ness Avenue and Otis Street. He fled on foot from his totaled vehicle where officers chased and arrested him on Gough Street near Otis Street, locating $2,657 of cash in his pockets.
While searching the vehicle, officers located a loaded, operable, 9mm semi-automatic pistol in the center console. The officers also located a backpack on the front passenger’s side floorboard where they found nine individually packaged bags of methamphetamine and a digital scale. The nine bags totaled approximately 260 grams of methamphetamine. Officers also located a second digital scale in the car.
Lugo is currently out of custody and scheduled to surrender himself to the sheriff’s custody on July 14. Sentencing is schedule for July 24, where he faces more than 10 years in state prison.
