An Elkhart man was taken into custody Tuesday night following an alleged robbery, and a police pursuit.
Officers from the La Porte County Sheriff’s Department say deputies were dispatched to the Family Express station on West Johnson Road shortly before 8:30 p.m. CT following a report of a robbery at that location. The suspect left the scene.
Police say a deputy spotted the suspect’s vehicle traveling north on State Road 39 in La Porte County and attempted a traffic stop. The vehicle initially stopped, but fled the stop, according to the report. A pursuit began where the vehicles headed west on the Indiana Toll Road. The suspect’s vehicle reportedly began to travel toward U.S. 421 and wound into Porter County when the pursuit finally ended in the 3200 block of Calumet Avenue in Valparaiso.
The driver, 25-year-old Jerry Valencia, was arrested and booked into the La Porte County Jail on preliminary felony charges of robbery, resisting law enforcement, and operating while intoxicated. He also faces preliminary misdemeanor charges of operating while intoxicated and reckless driving.
He is being held on a $15,005 cash bond through La Porte County Circuit Court.
The Criminal Investigations Division is still investigating the incident.
The La Porte County Sheriff’s Department was assisted at the scene by the Porter County Sheriff’s Department, Valparaiso Police Department and Indiana State Police.
Suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
