Brandon Twp.- The actions that led to the arrest of a 42-year-old Alger man on Jan. 15 began with him knocking on the door of a township resident.
Christopher Michael Montney was arraigned Jan. 16 on one charge of fleeing a police officer, third degree, a 5-year felony, as well as a charge of driving while license suspended, second offense, in front of 52-2 District Court Judge Joseph Fabrizio.
Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Greg Glover said a homeowner on Oakwood Road was right to be suspicious when Montney knocked on his door and told the resident he was low on gas, requesting help. Montney had left his car, a green 1999 Plymouth minivan, running on the shoulder of the road. The homeowner turned him away, and then called police with a description of the vehicle.
Glover said from there, Montney went to a party store in the 400 block of South Street and requested two cartons of Newport cigarettes and a bottle of vodka. As the clerk turned to get the liquor, Montney stole the cigarettes and fled northbound on M-15.
A deputy searching for the suspect vehicle observed Montney drive around a motorist in the left turn lane at M-15 and Grange Hall Road. He activated his emergency lights and siren and began pursuing Montney westbound on M-15. Montney passed another vehicle at a high speed, despite double yellow lines and a curve, and then turned west on Perryville Road, leading the deputy on a chase with speeds up to 70 mph on the snow-covered dirt road. As he approached Jossman, Montney attempted to turn south, but skidded past the intersection, then reversed, ramming the patrol car. The suspect then went south on Jossman, with the deputy continuing pursuit in his damaged car. When Montney slowed to turn west on Jossman Hills Court, the deputy used the patrol vehicle’s push bars to force the suspect’s van into the ditch. Montney then bailed out of the van and ran about 100 yards before being captured by the deputy. The vehicle portion of the chase covered approximately 4.5 miles.
Montney was incoherent and when questioned, mostly replied, ‘I don’t remember.?
His prior criminal history includes larceny. The cigarettes he stole were later found on Grange Hall Road, where he’s thrown them out the window during the chase.
Glover believes Montney may have stopped at the Oakwood Road residence to see if anyone was home and may have been planning a home invasion. He noted the suspect had plenty of gas in his vehicle and he commended the homeowner for his quick actions in getting a vehicle description and calling police.
‘A lot of times homeowners don’t get vehicle descriptions and we have nothing to go on,? said Glover, adding that neither the deputy nor the suspect suffered any injuries. ‘We couldn’t take a chance on this guy getting back out on the main road. If he would have gotten out there, it could have been a lot worse.?