A 20-year-old Pickering motorist is facing multiple charges after refusing to stop for police, striking a cruiser with his car and later abandoning his vehicle yesterday.
On August 20 at 5 am., officers on routine patrol noticed a blue Ford SUV travelling northbound on Whites Road when it failed to stop at a red light and quickly turned eastbound onto Taunton Road.
The officers activated lights and made a traffic stop just east of Whites Road. While speaking to the driver, the officer detected the smell of alcohol and noticed full and empty bottles of beer and a bottle of wine in the vehicle. A 17-year-old female was in the passenger seat.
Both driver and passenger became argumentative and when the officers reached in to prevent the vehicle from moving, the driver and passenger physically resisted. When a breath sample was demanded, the vehicle sped away.
A short police pursuit led to a dead end street and one officer had to jump back into his cruiser to avoid being struck. The driver struck the police cruiser and left the area. The pursuit was quickly terminated as speeds exceeded 100 km/hr.
At approximately 5:45 am, officers observed the male suspect and female passenger walking southbound on Valley Farm Road, approaching Finch Road. They were both arrested.
The vehicle was located abandoned on Denvale Drive and its license plates had been removed. Further searching located a black sweater tucked away in some bushes on Valleyfarm Road. Inside the sweater were the two license plates for the vehicle, the car keys, ID, cellphones, a small quantity of marihuana and a cannabis candy bar.
Micah Berry, age 20, of Finch Avenue in Pickering has been charged with: Assault Peace Officer; Assault with Intent to Resist Arrest; Dangerous Operation of a Motor Vehicle; Assault with a Weapon; Failure to Stop After Accident and five offences under the Highway Traffic Act.
He was held for a bail hearing.
The 17-year-old female was charged with Assault Peace Officer and she was later released on a Promise to Appear form.