A 29-year-old Palos Hills man faces a felony charge of aggravated fleeing to elude police after Palos Heights officers said he sped away from them twice in one night in August, once at more than 100 mph on Route 83.
Jaylin Hopkins, of the 8500 block of 101st Terrace, was also charged with possession of cannabis with intent to distribute, according to Palos Heights police. He was released from custody and was scheduled to appear at the Bridgeview Courthouse, police said.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office approved the felony fleeing charge on Oct. 15, police said. That charge involves traveling 21 mph or more over the speed limit, according to the police statement. Palos Heights officers filed the cannabis charge.
Police gave this account:
At about midnight Aug. 14, a Palos Heights officer saw a black Infiniti sedan speeding in the 6200 block of Route 83. The car had no front or rear license plate. When the officer turned on emergency lights and sirens, the driver accelerated and headed east on Route 83 at more than 100 mph, using the median lane to pass other vehicles.
Officers did not chase the car because of the danger to officers and the public, police said. The officer was able to get the car’s registration.
About an hour later, the same officer saw the car in town. It sped off again, this time before any traffic stop was attempted, and headed toward Palos Hills.
Palos Hills police found the car near 103rd Street and 76th Avenue and stopped it, according to Palos Heights police. The driver pulled over.
Palos Heights officers arrived and took the driver into custody. During an inventory of the car, officers found about 60 grams of cannabis divided into several plastic bags, packaging police said is commonly used to sell drugs, and a small scale. The driver was released pending further investigation.
The arresting officer later obtained a search warrant for the suspect’s cellphone records. Those records placed the phone at the spot of the attempted Palos Heights stop at the time it happened, and later where the car was stopped in Palos Hills, police said.
