CORRECTION: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated Dilan was arrested in January for burglary.
A vehicle fleeing from a domestic incident crashed into a residence on the 400 block of Cascadilla Street in Ithaca around 10 PM Wednesday evening, with the vehicle and home catching fire shortly thereafter. Ithaca Police, New York State Police, Bangs Ambulance, and the Ithaca Fire Department immediately responded to the scene.
The driver, Ismanuel Dilan, 38, had been observed by an Ithaca Police officer to be driving recklessly at a high rate of speed.
Police dispatch audio indicates he was driving “90 miles per hour” on State street while fleeing from a domestic incident, where he allegedly assaulted and unlawfully restrained a victim.
The pursuing officer had attempted to stop the vehicle before terminating the pursuit immediately before the crash.
Following the crash, Dilan was found hiding behind the building he crashed into. Dilan was held at gunpoint by the officer before being arrested.
Dilan was treated at the scene by Bangs ambulance personnel. Dilan became combative, with an attending officer requesting assistance.
It was determined that Dilan, who was injured in the crash, would be treated at a regional trauma center. The ambulance then departed for Robert Packer Medical Center in Sayre, Pennsylvania around 10:50 PM.
Within minutes of the ambulance’s departure, Dilan again became combative, freed himself from his restraints and escaped the ambulance before running into the woods around the 1100 block of West Danby Road/Route 34.
Dispatch audio indicates Dilan had armed himself with “some sharp metal objects.”
A search for Dilan, with the assistance of a police canine unit and a drone, was ultimately successful, with a report he was again in custody around 11:51 PM. Dilan was then treated at Cayuga Medical Center.
Dilan was previously arrested by the Ithaca Police Department in 2011 following a shots fired incident described by law enforcement as an attempted suicide by cop.
In that incident, Dilan was armed with an AK-47 assault rifle and had fired the weapon in an apartment, then ran into a wooded area behind the complex.
Police attempted to negotiate with Dilan, who was unwilling to surrender. A SWAT team and crisis negotiation team was then summoned to the scene. Approximately an hour and a half later, Dilan fired more shots into the air, and then in the direction of police. After prolonged negotiations, Dilan eventually surrendered and was taken into custody.
Following Wednesday night’s pursuit & crash, socialist activists Angela DeVivo & Genevieve Rand of the Ithaca Tenants Union have attempted to sculpt a narrative where the police themselves were responsible for the crash. Reporters Judy Lucas of the Ithaca Voice and Matt Doughty of the Ithaca Times liked tweets from DeVivo & Rand proffering this interpretation of events. Lucas resides next door to the scene of the accident.
Rand was arrested in 2020 while attempting to stop an Ithaca Police vehicle from exiting the department’s parking lot in response to a shots fired call.
Dilan is currently being held pending arraignment and medical treatment, facing several charges including Assault 2nd Degree (Class D Felony), Unlawfully Fleeing a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle 3rd Degree (Class A Misdemeanor), Assault 3rd Degree (Class A Misdemeanor), Unlawful Imprisonment (Class A Misdemeanor), Aggravated Unlicensed Operation 3rd Degree (Unclassified Misdemeanor), Reckless Driving (Unclassified Misdemeanor), and numerous traffic violations. Additional charges are pending.
Additional photos of the crash scene and emergency response are available below.
