Rowan authorities say they are looking for a Cleveland man who ran from a license checkpoint because his license was revoked and he was in possession of drugs.
The Rowan County Sheriff’s Office conducted the checkpoint at U.S. 52 and O.C. Pine Drive about 11 p.m. Thursday. The driver, who was later identified as Mario Fernandors, 25, of the 12600 block of Cool Springs Road, stopped his vehicle as he approached the checkpoint and tried to turn around. The driver ran off the road and drove partially into a ditch.
An officer at the checkpoint got into his patrol car and began chasing the vehicle, which was traveling about 75 miles an hour. The driver then made a sudden turn into Sides Auto World on U.S. 52. The vehicle stopped, then ran into the front bumper of a Jeep Cherokee.
According to a report, Fernandors got out of his vehicle and ran towards a woods. The officer noted a pair of shoes on nearby railroad tracks. A police dog was called in to track Fernandors, but was unsuccessful. A passenger in Fernandors’ vehicle, who was identified as Brandon Calloway, told authorities Fernandors said his license was revoked and he had “warrants on him and wasn’t going back to jail.”
Calloway admitted he and Fernandors had also smoked some marijuana in the vehicle. Fernandors had tossed away the marijuana when he got out of the vehicle, but officers found it on the ground behind the vehicle.
Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Fernandors, is asked by authorities to contact the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office at 704-216-8700 or Crime Stoppers at 866-639-5245.