Man allegedly leads police chase through two counties

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Mich. – A Constantine man was arrested after allegedly leading police on a chase through counties in Indiana and Michigan, the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Office reported.

At 10:46 p.m. Sunday night, deputies were responding to a shots fired incident when they saw a suspicious vehicle coming from the area of the incident, reports said.

Deputies tried to perform a traffic stop on the vehicle for an equipment violation but the vehicle drove away at a high speed, beginning a pursuit on Constantine Road near Withers Road in Florence Township, police said.

The vehicle crashed into a parked vehicle on U.S. 131 near Withers Road but kept going, police said.

One person received minor injuries from this accident.

The suspect used his vehicle to ram a deputy’s patrol car and then threw numerous items from his vehicle to try to hit the pursuing patrol vehicles, reports said.

The pursuit went through Constantine and Mottville Townships before entering Elkhart County.

There, the suspect hit a mailbox and drove through a residential yard before crashing into a fence, ending the chase.

The suspect ran out of the vehicle, through the yard, and into a field until deputies apprehended him in the field.

The suspect, a 32-year-old man, was found to be in possession of methamphetamine, deputies said.

The suspect was taken to the Elkhart County Jail on Indiana charges, reports said.

Police are requesting additional charges of possession of meth, receiving and concealing stolen vehicle, fleeing and eluding, and felonious assault on a police officer be filed in St. Joseph County, Michigan.