Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 10, 1993 TAG: 9306100019
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: STEPHEN FOSTER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
He was caught when both his front tires blew out after he turned off an exit ramp.
Christiansburg police officer Barry O'Rourke said he received a report about a car stolen from Shawsville around 6:20 p.m. Minutes later he spotted a vehicle which police identified as the stolen car heading west on U.S. 11/460.
O'Rourke said he pulled in behind the car and tried to stop it, but the car turned onto the interstate via Exit 118 and headed down Christiansburg mountain.
The chase reached speeds of 110 mph, said O'Rourke, who at times backed off, hoping the fleeing suspect would slow down.
"I got concerned about his driving and I laid back," O'Rourke said. "He was passing cars on the right and tractor trailers on the right . . . He was driving pretty reckless."
After alerting truck drivers ahead with his CB radio, O'Rourke pursued the suspect until he turned off on the Dixie Caverns exit, just inside Roanoke County. At the bottom of the ramp, the car failed to make a turn and hurtled over a median strip, blowing out both front tires.
"Basically, it was just a bumpy ride for him," O'Rourke said.
O'Rourke captured the driver after a short foot chase, he said. The suspect, who had no driver's license, is being held in a Christiansburg juvenile detention home. He has been charged with failing to stop for a police signal and reckless driving.
Charges are pending in Montgomery County on the theft of the vehicle, O'Rourke said.
by CNB