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Englewood Walmart theft suspect in jail after 3-county, high-speed pursuit

UPDATE @ 8:50 p.m.: Zachary Miller remains in the Montgomery County Jail tonight, accused of stealing from the Englewood Walmart and then causing a three-county, high-speed pursuit that ended with his arrest in Shelby County.

Bail is set at $5,000 on the misdemeanor theft charge stemming from the Walmart incident, and a Michigan parole detainer has been filed related to felony charges in that state.

Formal charges of failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer and receiving stolen property have not been filed, according to the jail's online records.

UPDATE @ 4:20 p.m.: 

A 29-year-old Michigan man is in jail following a three-county pursuit that ended after he hit two Ohio Highway Patrol cruisers.

Zachary Miller is being detained in the Montgomery County Jail pending the filing of several charges that include fleeing and eluding, aggravated vehicular assault (for hitting the cruisers) and the theft charge from the Walmart on Hoke Road in Englewood, police and the state patrol officials said.

WHAT HAPPENED

Miller was spotted leaving the Walmart after he was suspected to stealing multiple radar detectors, Englewood police Sgt. Mike Lang said. Police attempted to stop the man’s Subaru Impreza but he refused to stop.

That was just after 2 p.m.

Lt. Joseph Gebhart, Piqua patrol post, said the state patrol received a call about that time that Englewood police were pursuing a theft suspect north on I-75 into Miami County.

The pursuit, which Gebhart said reached speeds of 85 mph, continued into Shelby County even after the suspect drove over spiked sticks troopers put down on the interstate just south of Piqua.

The suspect intentionally hit the two state patrol cruisers as he tried to turn around in a grassy median to escape. At the time, his car was missing its left front tire because of the stop sticks, Gebhart said.

Troopers and police from other jurisdictions boxed in the vehicle and the suspect surrendered.

WHO’S THE SUSPECT

Gebhart said troopers checked Miller’s identification and found that he is wanted in Michigan on at least two warrants (at least one of which involves a weapon),  and the car he was driving was reported stolen out of Kalamazoo, Mich.

“I think it was case of a suspect, with a couple of warrants, who didn’t want to go to jail,” Gebhart said.

Lang said extradition will have to be worked out because of the Michigan warrants, the pending charges from the state patrol and the local charges out of Englewood.

INITIAL REPORT

A police pursuit that started in Englewood involving a theft suspect from Walmart has ended on Interstate 75 in Shelby County Monday afternoon, according to police.

Around 2:25 p.m., an Englewood police office initiated a pursuit in the area of North Main Street and Interstate 70, according to police scanner traffic. The pursuit continued onto Interstate 75 through Miami County and has ended in Shelby County, about five miles north of U.S. 36.

Dispatchers could not confirm if a suspect was taken into custody, however a photo sent by an iWitness 7 reporter shows a man in a white t-shirt appearing to be in handcuffs.

A significant backup is being reported on I-75 north near U.S. 36., according to our reporter heading to the scene.

Initial reports indicate at least one Ohio State Highway Patrol cruiser was struck by the suspect vehicle during the pursuit.

We have a crew on the way and we’ll update this page as new details become available.

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