The La Plata County Sheriff’s Office has arrested an 18-year-old man suspected of riding his motorcycle at a high rate of speed and eluding law enforcement on multiple occasions before being caught.
Jonathan Prescott of Durango was arrested earlier this month on suspicion of two felonies and one misdemeanor in connection with the alleged speeding and eluding, which took place from May 9 through July 9.
One of the felonies includes attempted assault for allegedly brushing up against the side of a sheriff’s deputy while attempting to flee, according to an arrest affidavit.
According to the affidavit, Prescott was first recorded traveling 107 mph in a 50 mph zone on U.S. Highway 160 in the Grandview area on his green Kawasaki EX650 Ninja.
A Sheriff’s Office deputy activated his lights and gave chase, but the motorcyclist fled the scene and the deputy lost visual contact, according to the affidavit.
One week later, on May 16, another deputy recorded Prescott driving 78 mph in a 45 mph zone on Florida Road (County Road 240) northeast of Durango, according to the affidavit. The deputy activated his lights, but did not attempt further contact because he was responding to another call.
The deputy put out a description of the motorcyclist, which allowed a Durango Police Department officer to stop the speeding suspect and identify him as Prescott, according to the affidavit. Prescott did not receive a citation from the stop, said Chris Burke, spokesman with the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office.
The third speeding incident was recorded May 29 when Prescott was allegedly traveling 61 mph in a 50 mph zone on South Camino del Rio in Durango. A sheriff’s deputy activated his lights, but the motorcyclist fled again, hitting speeds of over 100 mph. The deputy again lost visual contact.
The deputy reviewed a Flock database and identified numerous photos of the motorcycle’s license plate. The footage assisted in locating the suspect, Burke said.
A Sheriff’s Office deputy recorded a fourth incident on June 11 in which Prescott was allegedly traveling 78 mph in a 35 mph zone going south in the 1500 block of Main Avenue. Prescott was briefly followed by law enforcement, but the pursuit was terminated, Burke said.
The next incident occurred more than three weeks later on July 4 near Bayfield.
Bayfield Police Chief Sean Dugan reported a green motorcycle speeding and driving recklessly, nearly hitting several pedestrians. A sheriff’s deputy who was directing holiday traffic near Bayfield Parkway and County Road 516 saw the motorcycle at the intersection and attempted to confront the driver.
The driver sped away, but in doing so caused the deputy to jump out of the way. The rider allegedly struck his leg against the deputy’s leg. The rider continued to flee, according to the affidavit.
Five days later, on July 9, a rider matching Prescott’s description appeared to be closely watching a deputy as he turned onto Highway 160. The deputy said he turned around and attempted to get behind the motorcycle. The motorcycle sped away upon seeing the deputy, fleeing the encounter once again.
About 45 minutes later, another deputy observed the suspected motorcyclist run a red light near Santa Rita Park in Durango.
The affidavit concludes by saying another deputy located a motorcycle matching the description of the suspect’s vehicle at a residence in west Durango. A sheriff’s deputy drove to the residence and spotted Prescott parking the motorcycle behind the house, according to the affidavit.
He was arrested that day and booked into the La Plata County Jail on suspicion of attempted assault, vehicular eluding and eluding a police officer.
Formal charges are expected to be filed 9:30 a.m. Aug. 5 in La Plata County Combined Courts.