Man accused of kidnapping and running away from Yuma police formally charged

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) - The man accused of kidnapping and running away from Yuma police was formally charged Tuesday.

Jeffrey Proett, 57, is facing ten charges, including eight felonies. These include kidnapping, endangerment, reckless driving and running away from police.

This comes after an officer found a vehicle that had run away from the Wellton Police Department earlier in the evening, with the vehicle driving in the wrong direction in the area of E. 16th Street, near the Yuma Palms Mall, before 4 a.m. Sunday.

After the vehicle pulled over at a gas station, YPD said the officer approached the vehicle and ordered Proett to exit the vehicle.

However, YPD said Proett became combative and hit the driver. After that, he drove away, "knocking the officer down, causing minor injuries."

YPD then said the officer radioed them that the vehicle had run away, and the officer said there was an unresponsive elderly woman inside the vehicle.

YPD said the vehicle was found, and officers conducted a chase on eastbound Interstate 8, where the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) help and took over the chase.

While the vehicle continued driving eastbound, YPD said AZDPS used stop sticks to stop the vehicle by milepost 43, but the driver still refused to exit the vehicle, prompting the Special Enforcement Team to be called to the scene.

Proett was then taken into custody without further incident while the passenger, a 91-year-old woman who knew the driver, was taken to Onvida Heath, where she is in stable condition, YPD said.

YPD added the driver was booked into the Yuma County Detention Center, and he is being held on a bond of $150,000.

Proett will be back in court for a preliminary hearing on October 21.