One sweet ride

Des Moines Register story

Des Moines police got some help in stopping a stolen $50,000 car.

The car stopped itself.

"It was an Infiniti FX45, 315 horsepower V-8 with a real throaty sound," Detective Terry Mitchell said Friday. The driver "was blowing stop signs, driving fast; I don't even think he knew I was behind him."

The detective, in an unmarked vehicle, spotted the car Thursday night on the city's north side shortly before it was reported stolen.

Mitchell radioed for an officer in a squad car, who pulled in front of the Infiniti.

"The car just stopped," Mitchell said. "Apparently, it's got radar, and when it's on cruise control and detects an object in front of it, it will slow down.

"I don't know if it was on cruise or not, but it stopped right away."

Mitchell said that when suspected car thief Jeff Baugh, 37, was arrested, he offered some unsolicited comments about what happened.

"I didn't hurt the car," Baugh reportedly told officers.

Police said that after the owner, Dr. Philip Colletier, stopped to pick up his vehicle, Baugh - still handcuffed in the back of a squad car - shouted: "That's the fastest car I ever drove."

"The thief really liked that car," Mitchell said.

Baugh was listed on reports as homeless.