Citizen tackles driver who ran following police pursuit
NEW PHILADELPHIA (WJER) (May 16, 2025) – State troopers are crediting an onlooker for helping apprehend a driver accused of running from authorities after leading them on a pursuit from New Philadelphia to Newcomerstown.
New Philadelphia Post Commander Lt. Johnnie Maier says the pursuit started around 7:40 p.m. Wednesday on Commercial Avenue when the suspect allegedly had been pulled over for a vehicle defect but then drove off when the trooper discovered signs of other possible crimes.
The pursuit lasted about 20 minutes over stretches of I-77 and Stonecreek Road.
Maier says it ended along Harding Street in Newcomerstown when the suspect ran from his vehicle and made it about 400 feet before being tackled by a resident who saw the foot chase unfold across several yards.
He says the suspect, 21-year-old Connor Vance of Newcomerstown, was jailed and charged with felonies of failure to comply for driving off from the traffic stop and tampering with evidence for allegedly tossing some items from his vehicle as he ran.
Other charges include misdemeanors of operating a vehicle while impaired, reckless driving, and a window tint violation.
Maier says two law enforcement vehicles also suffered minor damage at the conclusion of the car chase. Vance struck the side of a trooper’s car when he pushed open the door to exit his vehicle. He also says Vance either left his vehicle in neutral or reverse because it then backed into a sheriff’s cruiser.