BLACKSBURG, Va. – A Montgomery County man faces nine felony charges after he refused to exit his vehicle for a field sobriety test and then fled from police.
Blacksburg police say an officer stopped a 2003 Chevy pickup truck in the 1400 block of North Main Street in Blacksburg on Wednesday around 10 p.m.
The officer had “reasonable suspicion” that the driver, Mitchell Linkous, 45, was impaired. The officer asked Linkous to exit his vehicle for a field sobriety test, but he refused. Linkous closed the driver’s side door on the officer and drove off, according to Blacksburg police.
The chase went from Blacksburg into Christiansburg and finally ended in Montgomery County. Linkous intentionally drove at officers during the pursuit and hit three police cars near Merrimac Road, according to Blacksburg police.
Officers ended the pursuit but later found the Chevy truck in the 1400 block of Oilwell Road, crashed and abandoned, according to Blacksburg police.
A police K-9 unit assisted officers in searching the area. They also used a drone in their attempt to find Linkous. They eventually found him hiding behind an outbuilding.
Police say Linkous was taken into custody without incident at that point.
Linkous was arrested on the following charges:
- Aggravated assault on law enforcement (6 felony counts)
- Destruction of property (2 felony counts)
- Eluding law enforcement (1 felony count)
- Destruction of property (1 misdemeanor count)
- Driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated (1 misdemeanor count)
- Refusal of breath tests (1 misdemeanor count)
Linkous is being held in Montgomery County Jail without bond awaiting arraignment.
No officers were injured during the pursuit and subsequent search, according to Blacksburg police.