A high-speed pursuit reaching nearly 100 mph concluded with a Chicago man behind bars and facing a slew of charges, DuPage County prosecutors detailed. Kentrell Hayes, 25, allegedly led police on a chase early Friday morning after a traffic stop for speeding escalated, prompting a dramatic interstate pursuit.
The ordeal began in Westmont where Hayes, after being stopped, fled from the police, leading to Westmont officers halting their pursuit shortly after, according to NBC Chicago. The chase resumed when Oak Brook police deployed "stop sticks" after receiving word from Hinsdale police about a speeding Toyota that matched Hayes' vehicle's description. Despite his vehicle losing three tires, Hayes continued driving until a crash on I-290 finally brought the chase to an end.
Held until trial, Hayes is charged with two counts of manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance, a count of manufacture and delivery of cocaine, and aggravated fleeing and eluding a police officer. Following the chase and subsequent search of his vehicle, authorities found 108 bags containing heroin and fentanyl weighing approximately 149 grams, plus four bags containing two grams of cocaine, alongside $1,620 in cash, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Hayes, hailing from the Near West Side of Chicago, managed to evade initial apprehension despite tire damage to his car before crashing into a concrete barrier on I-290, which caused the hood to obscure his windshield. Subsequently, Hayes was detained by Forest Park police. His next court appearance is set for March 17, as the judicial process proceeds to untangle the circumstances of that early Friday morning.
