Street racing is one of those things that rarely ends well for anyone involved. Add alcohol, a stranger from a sports bar, and a deputy who was simply trying to do his job, and you have the ingredients for a night that lands someone in handcuffs five days later. That is more or less what unfolded on Loop 410 in San Antonio, Texas, on the evening of June 18, when a motorcycle and a car were spotted racing each other by a Bexar County Sheriff’s Office traffic deputy.
The deputy moved to pull the vehicles over, which is where things got considerably more complicated. Rather than pulling to the side of the road like a sensible person, the motorcyclist apparently decided his most useful contribution to the situation was to run interference. He maneuvered his bike back and forth in front of the patrol car, repeatedly blocking the deputy from reaching the car ahead, all while traveling at speeds approaching and exceeding 100 miles per hour.
At some point during this performance, the rider found the time to turn around on his motorcycle and gesture rudely at the officer with one hand, steering with the other. If that sounds like something you would see in a film and dismiss as unrealistic, dash camera footage from the patrol car confirms that it did in fact happen. The deputy, for his part, was not impressed.
The encounter came to a head when the deputy attempted to go around the motorcycle to resume the pursuit of the car. The motorcyclist responded by ramming the side of the patrol vehicle, punching a notable hole in it. The deputy ended the chase at that point, which, under the circumstances, was a reasonable call.
The Investigation
Identifying the rider was not straightforward because the motorcycle had no license plate. Detectives spent several days working the case, pulling on a few threads. They tracked down the driver of the car, who had subsequently crashed and totaled his own vehicle in a separate incident handled by San Antonio police.
That driver, when interviewed, gave up the motorcyclist. Investigators also contacted BMW directly to cross-reference owners of similar motorcycles sold in the region.
The Arrest
Cyrus Jason Eckman, 26, of Cibolo, was arrested at his home Tuesday morning. According to Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, Eckman and the car’s driver had only met that evening, bonding over World Cup soccer at a local bar before deciding to race each other home. They had been drinking.
Eckman now faces six charges, including aggravated assault against a public servant, evading arrest with a vehicle, criminal mischief, interference with a highway racing investigation by reckless acts, collision involving vehicle damage, and racing on a highway.
What Comes Next
Sheriff Salazar indicated at Tuesday’s press briefing that investigators believe Eckman may have been involved in prior incidents with law enforcement and intend to share information with partner agencies. His motorcycle has been seized.
As for the deputy whose patrol car took the hit: the vehicle is the one with the hole in it, but everyone walked away, which is the part that matters most.