BETHALTO - Police are investigating a case of a man who drove, then ran away from a Bethalto Police car, leaving a stolen truck and evidence behind.
A report filed this week states a Bethalto Police officer spotted a driver of a pickup truck eastbound on Illinois Route 140, talking on a cell phone, which is illegal.
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The officer also stated the suspect turned on Illinois Route 255 from Illinois Route 140 at a high rate of speed. The officer gave chase but terminated the pursuit after he obtained the license plate number. He stopped to avoid the danger of injury to other drivers.
Police soon found the truck unoccupied and running in the 1000 block of El Paso Lane, Rosewood Heights. A check with state records revealed the truck was stolen.
A search of the truck revealed 27 grams of methamphetamine, several rounds of .38-caliber ammunition, a cell phone, and a vehicle title for a motorcycle. An air conditioner was located in the rear of the truck. The license plate was also reported stolen.
Soon after officers took possession of the cell phone, a message appeared on the screen to a suspect who was later found on the roof of a home at 454 Valley Drive, Rosewood Heights, three blocks from the home in the 1000 block of El Paso Laane.
The resident of the home on Valley Drive noticed a ladder against the house and called the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, whose officers notified Bethalto Police.
Asked about why the ladder was against the house, the suspected, “you know why.”
The man on the roof did not answer any further questions, but said, “damn” after an officer asked about the stolen plate.
The chase was on May 1. The details of the case became public Friday.
The information is from a sworn statement that was filed in support of a search warrant for the cell phone.
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