Colbert man faces eight charges after chase

Christopher J. Coon, 25, 1165 Hargrove Lake Road, Colbert, is charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, driving with a suspended license, fleeing and attempting to elude, operating an unregistered vehicle, reckless driving, driving in the median, failure to maintain a lane, driving on the wrong side of the road, no insurance, possession of tools for the commission of a crime and obstruction of officers.

The case began at 11:30 a.m. when an officer noticed Coon’s vehicle make an improper lane change and he saw that the drive-out tag on the vehicle was improper, so the officer attempted to pull the vehicle over.

The report said Coon sped away toward Athens on U.S. 441. Near Whitehill School Road, the report said Coon encountered traffic, crossed over the median and headed south in the northbound lane of U.S. 441 before attempting to cross back to the southbound lane.

In the course of attempting to get back into the proper lane, the vehicle’s driver-side tires blew. The vehicle stopped, Coon exited and ran, only to be tackled by the officer.

Upon getting back to the car, the officer said he could see in the front seat a hypodermic needle and some spoons — signs of drug use. Coon refused to let the officer search the vehicle, but a Banks County deputy soon arrived with a drug dog, which alerted on the vehicle. The officer said he found a black book bag containing two bags of suspected methamphetamine. He also found a grinder commonly used to grind up marijuana, the report said.