Four charged following pursuit that produced guns, drugs in Bentleyville area
BENTLEYVILLE – A Washington, D.C., man and three passengers in his vehicle are facing charges stemming from a state police pursuit Wednesday that ended in several crashes and produced weapons and drugs in the Bentleyville area.
District Judge Curtis Thompson signed a warrant Thursday for the arrest of the driver, Dante Lamar James Jr., 33, who was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital after the pursuit ended shortly before 6 p.m. at Johnston Road and Lincoln Avenue in Somerset Township. The cause and extent of his injuries were not immediately known Thursday, police said.
Charles McKinley Dutch Jr., 31, and two other passengers were being held on $250,000 bonds after police found him hiding in a shed in the 600 block of Lincoln Avenue, court records show.
The other suspects, China Moon Chambers, 18, of Leesburg, Va., and Kinayja Danoe Satterwhite, 18, of Washington, D.C., were arrested after they ran into a nearby residence while the homeowner was there, police noted in the affidavit.
Police said an effort was made to pull over the car James was driving about 5:40 p.m. for speeding on Interstate 70 East approaching the exit to Route 917 in Somerset Township.
He sped off, passing several vehicles on Route 917, before making a right on to Johnston Road in Bentleyville and striking a building on the corner of the intersection, charging documents allege. The car continued on Johnston until James lost control of it, crashing into a van and continuing through a fence while running over children’s toys, the record states.
The car was still moving when the four suspects jumped out of it and fled on foot. James was taken into custody following a brief foot chase, police said.
Police said troopers found an AR-15 in the car, along with a bag of crack. A bottle of drugs and a dollar bill also were found at the scene, police said.
Police said a white bag holding three handguns was tossed from the vehicle in Bentleyville.
The four were each charged with burglary, trespassing, flight to avoid apprehension, possessing firearms without a license, drug possession and criminal mischief. James faces additional charges of fleeing from police and causing accidents involving damages to property.
Chambers, Satterwhite and Dutch were being held Thursday in Washington County jail.