COLUMBUS, Ind. — A Bartholomew County man was arrested on several charges Thursday morning after trying to flee a Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) deputy in a stolen vehicle.
Dominique Nichols, 27, of Columbus, was charged with resisting law enforcement in a vehicle, leaving the scene of an accident, resisting law enforcement on foot, theft of a vehicle, theft of a license plate, and reckless driving.
The deputy observed a truck on Thursday, at around 8 a.m., at the intersection of 10th Street and National Road where it appeared the driver was visibly nervous and attempting to conceal his face.
A license plate check revealed that it was stolen in Bartholomew County. The officer tried to stop the vehicle but says the driver accelerated and took off from the Walmart parking lot. During the chase through the southern part of Columbus, the truck went through a bean field and onto a sidewalk.
At Gladstone and McKinley Avenues, Nichols exited the vehicle and fled on foot. When he abandoned it, the suspect failed to put the stolen truck in park and it rolled into a fence of a residence causing minor damage. After a short foot pursuit, he was apprehended.
Further investigation by BCSO revealed that not only was the license plate stolen in Bartholomew County, but the truck itself had also been pilfered in Johnson County. Nichols was transported to Columbus Regional Health for jail clearance due to him allegedly ingesting methamphetamine.