An attempted traffic stop a little before 1-a.m. today (Thursday), in northern Mills County, resulted in a pursuit that ended in Pottawattamie County and the arrest of a man from Nebraska. According to the Mills County Sheriff’s Department, a Deputy with the Sheriff’s Dept. K9 Unit attempted to conduct the traffic stop on a 2014 GMC Sierra pickup, that was without license plates. When the deputy activated his patrol vehicles’ emergency lights and sirens, the suspect pickup truck sped-off at speeds of more than 100 mph.

The pursuit went northbound on Wabash Avenue into Pott. County. Troopers with the Iowa State Patrol set up “stop sticks” at the intersection of Highway 92 and Wabash Avenue, but the pickup instead turned east on Valley View Drive, in an attempt to evade the tire puncturing device. The vehicle then drove through the dead end on Valley View Drive and crashed into a large embankment. While the male driver took off on foot, a female passenger in the vehicle was detained by the K9 Unit. Over 28 grams of methamphetamine was located near the crash site.

Tyler Evans (photo courtesy Mills County S/O)

After a brief foot chase, the Council Bluffs Police Department K9 “Rudy” was able to apprehend the suspect driver at the bottom of a creek spillway. Authorities say 27-year-old Tyler Keith Evans, of Omaha, was taken into custody and transported to Mercy Hospital, where he was treated for injuries to his hand. He was then transported to the Mills County Jail and is facing several felony charges, including: Felony Eluding; Possession of Meth w/the intent to deliver; Theft in the 1st Degree; and Failure to Affix a Drug Tax Stamp, along with other, misdemeanor offenses. Evans also had several warrants out for his arrest from Virginia, but they were non-extraditable in Iowa. His bond was set at $40,000.

The female passenger in truck was released with no criminal charges. Mills County Sheriff’s Deputies were assisted during the incident by the aforementioned Council Bluffs P-D K9 Unit and Iowa State Patrol, along with Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputies.

Disclaimer: a Criminal charge is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.