Two men facing charges after police chase

BEDFORD COUNTY (WSLS 10) -  Two men are facing charges after leading police on a chase through Vinton and Bedford County.

On Wednesday at 8:20 p.m., a patrol officer with the Vinton Police Department initiated a traffic stop near the intersection of Elm Street and Gunn Avenue. As the officer exited his patrol vehicle to approach the driver, the suspect drove away and a pursuit ensued.

Police say the driver rapidly turned around and nearly struck the Vinton officer before traveling east on Washington Avenue.

When the suspect entered Bedford County on Hardy Road, police say the Roanoke County Emergency Communications Center confirmed the vehicle had been reported stolen out of Maryland. The pursuit then continued to Turner Branch Road in Bedford County.

At that point, a Virginia State Police Trooper entered the pursuit. The suspect then turned onto Goodview Road.

Bedford County Sheriff's Deputies then successfully placed a tire deflation device near Goodview Grocery, which deflated at least two of the suspect's tires; however, the suspect continued.

Police say the chase ended when the suspect vehicle collided with a Virginia State Trooper on Jordantown Road. The State Trooper was not injured. A Franklin County Sheriff's Deputy was also briefly involved as the pursuit crossed jurisdictional boundaries.

The driver has been identified as 18-year-old Joshua Montgomery Wood of Broad Street in Roanoke.

He has been charged with Grand Larceny of a Motor Vehicle, Felony Eluding Law Enforcement, Possession of a Concealed Firearm, and the Abduction of an 18-year-old woman who was in the stolen vehicle with Wood.

Additionally, 18-year-old Anthony Edwin Reynolds of Short Street in Bedford was with Wood during the pursuit.

Police say Reynolds was also arrested on charges related to the stolen vehicle. Both suspects are being held without bond in the Roanoke County Jail.

The relationship, if any, between the suspects and the 18-year-old woman, is not known at this time.

Vinton Police Chief Tom Foster stated, "Police pursuits are sometimes a necessary component to policing in our society. When properly monitored and managed, they can be effective in safely apprehending fleeing suspects.

Chief Foster says there is no known connection between the pursuit and abduction, and the March 27 homicide investigation being conducted by the Bedford County Sheriff's Office.