Suspect arrested after car chase and other news from the areas around Chattanooga

Friday, January 1, 1904

photo Levi Daniel Coats

Suspect arrested after car chase

BRADLEY COUNTY, Tenn. - A man suspected in a car chase that started in Georgia and ended in Tennessee after the driver fled on foot was arrested in Bradley County, authorities said.

Levi Daniel Coats, 24, of Dalton, Ga., was picked up Thursday morning while walking along Dalton Pike, said Bob Gault, spokesman for the Bradley County Sheriff's Office. The clothing worn by Coats matched the description given by Georgia deputies, Gault said.

Coats is charged as a fugitive from justice, Gault said, and is awaiting extradition to Georgia.

On Wednesday, Whitfield County and Varnell units began pursuing a Nissan Maxima after it was stolen from a Varnell convenience store, Gault said.

The vehicle crossed into Bradley County, where deputies threw down spike strips near Waterville Community Elementary School. Once the tires deflated, the driver, who was alone, ran away.


Teens charged after break-in

DALTON, Ga. - Two Dalton teenagers have been charged with burglary after a home break-in, authorities said.

Antonio Ricardo Mateo, of Lakemont Drive, and Victor Gonzalez, both 18, of 514 McAfee St., have been charged with felony burglary and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, according to a news release from Whitfield County Sheriff Scott Chitwood.

About 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, a sheriff's deputy was on Airport Road when he stopped a 2005 Chevrolet Equinox with an expired tag, the release said. Two men were inside.

After speaking with the driver, Mateo, about the tag, the deputy became suspicious of the men, who were told to get out of the vehicle and were searched, the release said.

A Gladden Middle School ring with a name on it was found in one of their pockets. Inside the car, a large-screen TV, jewelry, compound bow and computer games were found, Chitwood said, and a firearm also was recovered from the vehicle.

The owner of the ring was identified, and a deputy sent to a home on Keith Mill Road. The deputy saw that the back door had been kicked in and the home burglarized, the release said.

The homeowner was contacted and told police that several items, which matched the ones found in the vehicle, had been stolen, the release said.


Woman charged with forgery

BRIDGEPORT, Ala. - A 36-year-old woman from Sylvania, Ala., has been accused of forging a prescription for hydrocodone, authorities said.

Kristi Norine Phillips is charged with second-degree forgery, possession of controlled substances and second-degree theft of property, according to a release from the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. She is in the Jackson County Jail on $8,500 bond.

She was arrested Wednesday after the narcotics unit received a complaint of a suspicious prescription at a Jackson County pharmacy.