Staff Report

Dustin C. Hall

WARSAW — A Columbia City man was arrested after leading officers in a high-speed pursuit while driving a stolen motorcycle.

Dustin C. Hall, 33, 215 S. Eagle Glen Trail, Columbia City, is charged with resisting law enforcement, theft, and possession of methamphetamine, all level 6 felonies; driving while suspended, a class A misdemeanor; possession of marijuana, a class B misdemeanor; and possession of paraphernalia and reckless driving, both class C misdemeanors.

On Sept. 13, a Warsaw Police officer noticed a motorcycle traveling at a high rate of speed. The motorcyclist popped a wheelie in front of several children in the area of Buffalo Street. The officer then sought to pull the driver over for speeding and unsafe movement in a 30 mph zone.

According to court documents, the officer saw the motorcyclist cross a double yellow line and quickly accelerate around another westbound vehicle. The motorcyclist allegedly drove through a SR 25 intersection at over 80 mph, disregarding a four-way stop. In the area of CR 400W, the officer saw the motorcycle travel at least 135 mph in a 50 mph zone.

While the officer continued his pursuit, the motorcyclist looked back and began to wave his arms as if he wanted the officer to continue chasing him. In straightaways, the motorcycle reached speeds of over 100 mph. The officer saw the motorcyclist turn east onto CR 200N, but the officer was no longer able to see the motorcycle. Later, two people said they saw the motorcycle drive into a cornfield in the area of CR 875W and CR 200N.

The officer was then notified that the Indiana State Police had taken a man into custody. The man, later identified as Hall, was the motorcyclist the Warsaw officer had been pursuing. Hall had walked out of the cornfield from an area where the Warsaw officer had last seen him.

Hall said he was simply showing off for the children and fled to stay away from the population. When asked if there were any illegal drugs around his motorcycle, Hall said there was not but that he was currently in possession of marijuana.

While searching Hall’s person, officers found two small bags of marijuana and a glass smoking pipe with methamphetamine residue. When officers found the motorcycle in the field, they discovered it had no visible plates and that its identification number showed it was stolen out of Indianapolis. The ignition on top of the motorcycle’s fuel tank had also been drilled out. Hall told officers he bought the motorcycle in Fort Wayne for $230. He said he used a screwdriver to start the motorcycle.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department said the motorcycle’s owner reported the vehicle had been stolen from his home the week prior. The owner also said a drill piece had been left behind.

Hall has a prior conviction for driving while suspended in Allen County from June of this year.

For this case, he has already been arrested and released on his own recognizance.