File Photo – Lakewood Police Department | Photo: Inventorchris / Flickr (Creative Commons)

A suspect who fled from officers and was reported to be possibly armed prompted a major police search near Huntley Thursday evening, officials said.

A message was broadcast to police agencies about a reckless driver in the Huntley area around 11 p.m. Thursday.

A Lakewood police officer spotted the vehicle traveling northbound on Route 47, according to police officials.

A traffic violation was observed and the officer proceeded to stop the vehicle north of Foster Road on Route 47 in unincorporated Huntley.

Police officials said the driver exited the vehicle through the passenger side after the vehicle came to a stop. He ran eastbound into a wooded area.

The officer reported the suspect was possibly armed after he was spotted holding something in his hand, according to police radio traffic.

The driver was an unknown male black wearing a red hooded sweatshirt. A check of the vehicle’s status showed it was stolen from Northlake.

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An alert was sent out to residents cautioning them of the incident and asking homeowners to keep their doors locked.

The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office, Woodstock Police Department, Lake in the Hills Police Department, Huntley Police Department and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene to assist in a search.

Police personnel were staged on perimeter roads of Route 47, Foster Road, Haligus Road, Woodbine Road, Woodland Hills Drive and Ballard Road.

The Lakewood and Woodstock police departments searched through the air with their drones while Lake County searched with a canine accompanied by a search team.

The subject was not located following the hour-and-a-half search effort, police officials said.

The Northlake Police Department was notified and the vehicle was towed from the scene.