BOSTON — Boston police arrested a 27-year-old man on Beacon Street in downtown Boston Tuesday after, they said, he refused to move his car out of a tow zone and then drove off as officers approached, nearly hitting an elderly pedestrian.

Javier Breitling is expected to be arraigned in Boston Municipal Court on charges of failing to stop for police, refusing to identify himself as a driver and reckless driving, the Boston Police Department said Wednesday. He was also cited for a traffic violation, police said.

According to police, officers patrolling Tremont Street at about 8:33 p.m. saw a car idling in the street and blocking traffic. Officers turned on their lights to signal the driver to move, and he got back into the car and drove slowly forward, still blocking the road, police said.

The driver then pulled into a marked tow zone, police said. When officers told him he could not park there, he said it was fine because he was an Uber driver waiting for a pickup, according to the department. Officers told him he was blocking an emergency vehicle access point and would be cited if he did not move, and he said "no," police said.

As officers got out of their cruiser to write the citation, the driver got back behind the wheel, reversed, nearly striking an elderly pedestrian, and then sped off toward Tremont and Beacon streets, police said. Officers ran after the car and caught up with it in a traffic jam, where they pulled the driver out and arrested him, according to the department.

The charges are allegations, and Breitling is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

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