Alcohol a factor in assault-turned-police chase, charges filed against suspect
Alcohol is believed to be a factor in an assault case that turned into a police chase and crash on Saturday, according to a press release issued by the Mount Pleasant Police Department.
The name of the suspect, a 51-year-old West Branch man, has not been released.
Jeff Browne, MPPD's public information officer, told Central Michigan Life that he took warrants for the suspect's arrest to the Isabella County Prosecutor's office Monday morning and expects them to be signed later in the day.
Browne did not know whether the suspect was still being treated for injuries sustained in the crash. Browne added that the suspect has still not been arraigned, however, he was able to list the charges the suspect can face.
The suspect is being charged with seven counts, one of each as follows: kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, attempted criminal sexual conduct attempted, fleeing and eluding, carrying a concealed weapon (knife), stalking, operating while intoxicated.
All of the charges listed are consider felonies. Count one carries a potential life sentence, while the others carry five-year to 15 year sentences. The stalking charge was added because there is a protective order placed on interaction between the couple in the state of Colorado.
Police were dispatched to the Super 8 motel, 2323 S. Mission St., after receiving a report that a man was dragging a woman by her hair, according to the press release. A MPPD officer saw the vehicle leaving the parking lot and initiated a traffic stop. Once stopped, the victim, a 50-year-old West Branch woman, ran out of the vehicle.
She was treated for injuries at a local medical facility and has been released from medical care.
The suspect fled the scene in his red pickup truck eastbound on Bluegrass Road at speeds up to 75 mph. The suspect attempted to turn at the Isabella Road intersection and crashed into a car parked in the driveway of a residence at the end of the street.
Check back with cm-life.com for more on this story.
