West Virginia State Police formed a rolling roadblock on Potomac Road early last Thursday, September 15, ending a high-speed chase that began at about 1 a.m. on Wilkes Street in Berkeley Springs.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Morgan County Magistrate Court by Trooper B.A. Meyers, police turned on their emergency lights and sirens after spotting a grey Mazda 3 with no registration turning left on Wilkes Street at Cacapon Road.
The Mazda reportedly kept going, with the marked cruiser close behind, heading north on Hancock Road, traveling through Jimstown at speeds of around 40 miles per hour, and crossing over into the opposite lane.
Police kept pace as the car turned right on Sand Mine Road, then started heading north up Fairview Drive at speeds up to 80 MPH, passing three vehicles over blind rolling hills.
The driver of the Mazda, later identified as Michael L. Shrader, who turned 29 last Friday, of Big Pool, Md., allegedly reached speeds of 90 miles per hour after turning east on River Road past Pious Ridge Road.
Police officers safely brought the Mazda to a stop by forming a “rolling roadblock” in front of it on Potomac Road past Burnt Mill Road.
Shrader reportedly told police he thought they were “hit men” coming after him. According to the police report from Maryland, he has 75 prior convictions and three accidents.
Shrader is incarcerated at Eastern Regional Jail awaiting a hearing in the incident.
