On the run for weeks, an Atwater vandalism suspect arrested after crashing her car

A woman wanted for vandalizing an Atwater hotel room last month was arrested Thursday morning after crashing her car and fleeing on foot, police reported.

Atwater police responded to the scene of a possible crash near Fourth Street and Quince Avenue after receiving reports of a reckless driver crashing and fleeing on foot, police said in a news release.

Atwater police found 28-year-old Elizabeth Rogers a few blocks away. Rogers has two active warrants out for her arrest and was a person of interest in a felony vandalism investigation from late June at the Applegate Inn. The hotel owner told police a sink was purposely clogged and the water was left running, flooding multiple rooms.

Rogers told police someone was chasing her and when she tried to drive off and flee, her tire blew.

Officers found her car with a flat tire and minor front bumper damage, police said. While searching the car, officers also found a large “freezer-type baggy” full of marijuana.

Rogers was booked into Merced County Jail on both warrants and a new charge of possession of marijuana. Atwater police forwarded the case involving the Applegate Inn to the Merced County District Attorney’s Office for review.

This story was originally published July 13, 2017 at 4:29 PM with the headline "On the run for weeks, an Atwater vandalism suspect arrested after crashing her car."