A Gary man is behind bars after a high-speed chase Monday morning involving Portage and Gary police officers.
Walter Thomas, 31, of the 3600 block of E. 14th Ave., was taken to the Porter County Jail, where he faces a string of charges, including felony fleeing law enforcement and six misdemeanors, ranging from operating a vehicle while intoxicated and criminal recklessness with a vehicle.
The incident began with a routine traffic stop, when Portage police pulled Thomas over for allegedly speeding near the intersection of Dombey Road and U.S. Highway 20. As a Portage officer approached Thomas’ 2011 Mercury sedan, Thomas reportedly peeled out and fled westbound on U.S. 20.
A second officer had just stopped to assist the first officer.
Both Portage officers gave chase, according to police reports. At speeds of up to 100 mph, police reported Thomas weaving around cars and running red traffic lights into Gary. A Portage police dispatcher contacted Gary police, and several of that city’s officers joined the chase as it headed west on U.S. 20.
As the pursuit approached U.S. 12, both Portage officers attempted to box Thomas in, using their vehicles. Officers also wrote of using pursuit tactics used in high-speed chases at least twice. In one of those instances, Thomas allegedly struck one of the police cars with his vehicle, causing both cars to spin out near U.S. Highway 12 and Aetna Street.
Soon, Gary and Portage police were able to end the chase and surrounded Thomas’ vehicle with their guns drawn on him. Thomas allegedly refused to exit the vehicle, even after one of the Portage officers broke his rear, driver’s side window to try to force him out.
A Portage officer and a Gary officer eventually pulled Thomas out of his vehicle and forced him to the ground, reports state.
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According to police reports, when asked why he fled, Thomas, whom Gary police knew, told officers his license was suspended, and he said he did not “have time to go to jail today.”
Michael Gonzalez is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.