MIDDLETOWN, DE — A late-night traffic stop escalated into an alleged vehicle pursuit and wooded foot chase that ended with two men taken into custody following assistance from a state police helicopter, authorities said.
According to the New Castle County Division of Police, an officer on patrol around 11:08 p.m. Friday, January 2, observed an older-model blue-and-white two-tone Ford F-150 leaving a section of the Whitehall development that is currently under construction. Police said the officer observed a traffic violation as the truck exited the area and activated emergency lights to initiate a stop on Lorewood Grove Road.
Investigators allege the driver failed to stop and fled at an unsafe speed. The vehicle was briefly lost from sight before another officer located it on Ratledge Road, where the driver again allegedly refused to stop and continued fleeing. Police said the truck eventually entered the Crystal Run Farms neighborhood, where both occupants exited the vehicle in the 100 block of Crystal Run Drive and ran into a wooded area.
The Delaware State Police Aviation Section, operating Trooper 4, was requested to assist with an aerial search. Police said the helicopter crew located one suspect hiding in a wooded area near railroad tracks. Officers converged on the location and arrested 46-year-old Eric Loudermilk of Elkton, Maryland, who was identified as the driver.
With continued aerial assistance, officers later located the passenger, 59-year-old Thomas Yates of Dover, on the railroad tracks. He was taken into custody without further incident, police said.
Loudermilk was transported to New Castle County Police Headquarters and charged with a felony count of disregarding a police officer’s signal, along with multiple misdemeanor charges including resisting arrest, third-degree conspiracy, failure to have insurance in possession, operating an unregistered motor vehicle, and third-degree criminal trespass. He also received traffic violations for speeding in excess of the posted limit and failure to signal continuously. Loudermilk was arraigned in Justice of the Peace Court 11 and committed to the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution after failing to post $2,005.00 secured bail.
Yates was also taken to police headquarters and charged with misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest and third-degree conspiracy, along with a violation of third-degree criminal trespass. He was arraigned in Justice of the Peace Court 11 and released on $1,001.00 unsecured bail.
Authorities stressed that all charges are allegations and that Loudermilk and Yates are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
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