Weird Police Stories: Suspect's Crash Ends Chase; Bond Hearing Results in More Charges

Several recent police reports chronicling strange happenings in Cartersville and Bartow County caught our eye here at Cartersville Patch.

Those weird local crime stories include:

Chase Ends in Crash with Disabled Truck

The through Cartersville and Bartow County himself ended the pursuit, according to the incident report.

Officers involved in the chase of an allegedly stolen car, which began at and ended in Cobb County, report it reached speeds in excess of 100 mph on Interstate 75.

"At mile marker 280 southbound, speeds reached 120 mph and the suspect vehicle again used the right side emergency lane to get around other cars," a deputy reports. "...It nearly collided with a broken-down vehicle in which two pedestrians had to run away on foot into the grass near the wood line for fear of getting ran over.

"Shortly thereafter, the suspect vehicle rammed into the back of a semi truck, which stopped the vehicle pursuit immediately."

Which do you think is the craziest? Tell us in the comments!

The driver, Thomas Joseph Madrie, 34, of Acworth, was injured and taken to an area hospital for treatment. He faces numerous charges.

Man Discharges Fire Extinguisher at Bar

late Friday night arrested a man accused of discharging a fire extinguisher inside a local restaurant.

The owner of called police after midnight to report the disturbance and showed officers surveillance video of a man with a shaved head and neck tattoos allegedly set off the extinguisher in a hallway near the restrooms.

A man police identified in the report as Jonathan Lee Raper was charged with disorderly conduct.

Saturday Bond Hearing Results in Additional Charges

A bond hearing Saturday morning at the resulted in a new set of criminal charges for one inmate.

An officer reports he noticed that inmate Zachary Aaron Griffith, 21, of Kingston, was asleep in the courtroom, and Griffith refused to wake up and pay attention as instructed. He allegedly continued to close his eyes and lie down in his seat, according to the BCSO incident report.

During his own hearing, Griffith was disrespectful, laughed at the judge and interrupted the proceedings, the deputy reports. Griffith, who the officer described as "still very boisterous" following a round of bond hearings, then demanded access to Facebook in his jail dormitory.

Authorities attempted to place Griffith in lock down, but he allegedly attacked a deputy and was pepper sprayed. He then allegedly punched a wall as he was being decontaminated.

Griffith, who previously was arrested and charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and possession of the tools for the commission of a crime, also faces felony obstruction of an officer and simple battery on a law enforcement officer charges.

Craigslist Couple 'Needed the Money'

A Cartersville woman reports she fell victim Thursday to a couple she met via the online classifieds site Craigslist.

The man and woman selling an iPhone 4S met the victim at about 9:30 p.m. and the three discussed and negotiated the sale for about 30 minutes. But after the victim handed over $280 to buy the smartphone, the couple suddenly ran off with it and the cash.

The victim, who had communicated with the couple via phone and email, said the female suspect asked to see the phone to remove her password. Walmart's surveillance system captured images of the African-American man and woman, who appeared to be in their late teens or early 20s.

The couple repeatedly said "they needed the money," in a later phone call to the victim, who tried to convince them to return to Walmart.

Suspected Shoplifter 'Was Not Stealing'

A Cartersville man accused of stuffing DVDs and Blue Rays in his cargo pants pockets last week in a separate incident at said he was not stealing, according to the report.

Ramesh Richards, 26, of Iron Belt Court, was arrested Wednesday about 9 a.m. after a loss-prevention officer reported he spotted Richards using a knife to open movie cases.

The Walmart employee confronted and detained Richards, who allegedly had several discs, valued collectively at $183, in his pocket.

"Ramesh advised he was going to come back later today and get the cases so he could pay for them and he was not stealing them," the responding deputy reports.

Richards was arrested and charged with misdemeanor shoplifting.

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