Rochester Police Deploy Pepper Balls to Arrest Pursuit Suspect
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- Rochester Police used force to arrest a man suspected of leading officers on a chase earlier this week.
The criminal complaint, filed in Olmsted County Court on Wednesday, says the incident started around 7:30 on Tuesday night. An officer on patrol on 37th St. saw a vehicle driven by a man he later learned had a revoked license.
The complaint identifies the driver as 42-year-old Houn Tith of Rochester. The officer activated his emergency lights and siren but Tith refused to stop and continued traveling on 37th St.
Tith's vehicle then stopped at a traffic light at the intersection of 41st Street and East Frontage Road Northwest. The complaint says the officer approached Tith’s vehicle and instructed him to stop driving but Tith accelerated away from the officer.
Several squad cars followed the vehicle Tith was driving to a residence in northwest Rochester. Tith refused to comply with commands to exit the vehicle, leading officers to shoot him with pepper-ball rounds to get Tith under arrest, the court document says.
Tith was arraigned in Olmsted County Court Wednesday on a felony fleeing charge. The judge in the case released him without bail but with conditions.
Court records indicate Tith has prior felony convictions for fifth-degree drug possession and theft in Olmsted County. He’s due back in court later this month.
What Its Really Like Inside Minnesota's Largest Candy Store!
More From KROC-AM
