Pocono News Section

Luzerne County Man Leads Police on Chase

Luzerne County Man Leads Police on Chase - Saturday, January 3, 2009 at 3:16PM EST

Reported by: Kyla Campbell
Saturday, Jan 3, 2009 @ 03:16pm EST

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY -- "It's not your typical start to a Saturday, that's for sure," said Lt. Steve Olshefski with the Wilkes-Barre city police.

At 6:30am, police were called to 43 Madison Street, where a man was allegedly harassing two women.

"I heard him yelling and pounding on their door," said neighbor, Gina Bartosh.

She watched two officers talk to that man, Michael Sullivan of White Haven. They thought he had a gun and tried to get him out of his SUV.

"He just took off and almost ran the two cops over and smashed a car," Bartosh added.

Sullivan slammed into a Ford Focus several times, dragging police with him. He got away, and the chase began.

"He struck two police cruisers during the pursuit," Olshefski said. "Ironically, the one officer got assaulted twice -- once on Madison Street and then his vehicle was struck."

Police say Sullivan hopped on the Cross Valley Expressway and had a chance to pull away. But instead he took the Kingston exit and headed north on Route 11.

"We're assuming he's not familiar with the area. If i was fleeing the police, I would've gone a different route," joked Olshefski. "But then again I guess I know how to do that."

Olshefski says the police were trained to follow Sullivan in the pursuit, which topped speeds of 70 miles per hour. The 45-minute chase ended at the Jewish Cemetery in Exeter Township. Police say Sullivan got out of his SUV and went into the Susquehanna River, where officers went after him.

"That was very courageous on their part," added Olshefski. "Waters at those temperatures can be very dangerous."

The day ended with Sullivan in custody. Police officers involved suffered only scrapes and bruises.

Sullivan faces several charges, including at least four counts of aggravated assault on a police officer. He remains behind bars while the investigation continues.