A man who allegedly fled at a high rate of speed from a traffic stop was arrested after deputies, a canine and a drone operator tracked him down in a wooded area near Wadsworth Tuesday evening.
A Lake County sheriff’s deputy was conducting speed enforcement on Route 41 near Wadsworth Road in Wadsworth around 9 p.m. Tuesday.
He observed a red Chevrolet sedan traveling at a high rate of speed, according to Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
The driver quickly pulled into a gas station at Route 41 and Wadsworth Road.
Covelli said the deputy pulled behind the vehicle and the driver fled by speeding northbound in the southbound lanes of Route 41.
The deputy briefly lost sight of the fleeing vehicle but soon located it abandoned near Kelly Road and Mill Creek Road.
A 911 caller reported a short time later seeing two people running westbound across the tollway, Covelli said.
A Gurnee Police Department canine team and a Libertyville police drone operator were requested to assist in the search.
The police drone operator located the two subjects hiding in a tree line west of the tollway, Covelli said.
The drone operator guided the canine unit and Lake County sheriff’s deputies to their location where both individuals were taken into custody.
Covelli said the driver, Shelmar K. Mays, Jr., 28, of Waukegan, was found in possession of multiple baggies of cannabis, as well as numerous credit cards belonging to other people.
Mays’ vehicle was seized and deputies intend to apply for a search warrant to search for additional evidence.
His passenger, a 22-year-old woman, was released pending further investigation.
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office approved charges against Mays of unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, obstructing justice, driving while license revoked, fleeing to elude, reckless driving and numerous traffic violations.
Mays is scheduled to appear in First Appearance Court on Wednesday morning.