A Massachusetts man died at the scene after his car went off the road in New Vineyard while being followed by deputies from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office on Sunday night.

Johnathan Daellenbach, 29, of Reading, Massachusetts, died after his car went off Route 27 around 10 p.m., Franklin County Sheriff Scott Nichols said in a news release Monday. Nichols said that Daellenbach’s 2004 Ford Focus went off the road after traveling at speeds of up to 96 mph. Daellenbach lost control, the car rolled over and hit a stone wall and trees south of the intersection with Bason Road.

Daellenbach was wearing a seat belt, “however, the car sustained massive damages,” Nichols said.

The incident began about 9:40 p.m. when two deputies were monitoring traffic from the Maine Wood Turning parking lot on Route 27 in New Vineyard. A southbound car went by them and appeared to be going faster than the posted speed limit, Nichols said.

When one deputy pulled out to stop the car, the vehicle’s driver accelerated, Nichols said.

The deputy “attempted to catch up to the vehicle,” but it was going 96 mph. The deputy lost contact with the vehicle and continued south on Route 27, with the other deputy following. The second deputy saw that the vehicle had gone off the road and crashed.

There were no passengers in the car and the sheriff’s office is continuing to investigate, Nichols said.


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