SACO — A car fleeing from police in Saco early this morning crashed and burned, and the driver ran leaving behind a suitcase with marijuana, hashish and hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Officer Rachel Horning started following a 2003 Hyundai Tiburon on Elm Street at 12:30 a.m. because it was speeding. The car stopped briefly but then sped off, said Saco Police Chief Rod Paul.

The car drove off so fast, Horning followed but did not try to keep up with the car, Paul said. A short distance away, on Bradley Street, Horning saw that the car had crashed into a utility pole, which had snapped bringing wires down onto the road. The car also caught fire.

She also saw a person running away. Horning tried to put out the fire but it could not be extinguished until firefighters arrived.

Police searched the car and found the suitcase with what officers described as a large amount of drugs, though the actual weight was not available. A Maine State Police tracking dog was brought in but it was rainy and the dog was unable to track the suspect, Paul said.

The car was registered to a 24-year-old man who lives a quarter-mile from where the car crashed, Paul said. Police have not been able to find him.

The man seen running from the crash did not appear to be injured, Paul said. The case remains under investigation.