Man hospitalized after car chase with Lewiston police

LEWISTON — A man was arrested on Canal Street Thursday afternoon after allegedly burglarizing vehicles, stealing a car and leading police on an erratic, high speed chase through town.

Police were assisted by several local people, including Lewiston fire and public works crews, who kept an eye on the suspect after he crashed the car on Main Street and fled on foot.

The pursuit began at about 2:30 p.m. and ended when the suspect’s car crashed into another vehicle and a guardrail minutes later.

The suspect was taken to a hospital after the wreck and later in the day, police were still trying to determine his identity. The accused faces various charges, including theft, eluding police and leaving the scene of an accident.

Lewiston Police Officer Jeff Burkhardt detains a man on Ash Street in Lewiston Thursday afternoon after he was suspected of crashing a vehicle on Main Street and fleeing the scene. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

According to Lewiston police Chief David. St. Pierre, the drama began when police were called for a report of a man going through vehicles in the area of 55 Strawberry Ave. The woman who had called in the complaint then reported to police that the man had stolen her car, a 2015 Nissan Versa, and drove off into the River Valley Village apartment complex.

A short time later, St. Pierre said, a police officer spotted a car being driven erratically across the grass on Mollison Way a short distance from the apartment complex. The officer began to pursue the Nissan, which had turned on to Main Street where the driver headed toward the downtown “recklessly and at excessive speeds,” St. Pierre said.

“The officer very quickly terminated his attempt at stopping the vehicle,” St. Pierre said, “due to safety concerns.”

A short time later, it was reported that the car had crashed on Main Street, near Chapel Street, and that the shirtless driver had taken off on foot.

A number of people in the area saw the man dashing off and they followed him, keeping an eye on the suspect until police arrived. When the officers got there moments later, they found the suspect in the area of Canal and Ash streets, about a block away from the crash site.

The suspect was taken to St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center “as a precautionary measure,” St. Pierre said. The man did not appear to have suffered serious injury.

The stolen Nissan Versa, considered a total loss after the wreck, was towed.

Police were continuing to investigate later Thursday.

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