Steven Henshaw
Reading Eagle, Pa.
(TNS)
Feb. 7—A Douglassville man led police on a high-speed chase through parts of three municipalities, and one covered bridge, after hitting an Oley Fire Company truck and the fire chief’s personal vehicle Monday evening in plain sight of a police officer, police said.
The events began when the fire company and an ambulance crew responded to Oysterdale Road and Route 73 in Oley Township shortly before 6 p.m. for a report of a person asleep or suffering from a medical issue behind the wheel of an SUV.
Responders arrived to find a man later identified as Michael V. Konchan, 27, passed out in the driver’s seat of the SUV with the motor running, investigators said.
Central Berks Regional police provided the following account:
When an emergency medical technician reached into the vehicle to turn off the ignition, Konchan woke up and grabbed the man’s forearm.
Konchan then shifted the transmission to drive.
Police Officer Joshua Steingraber pulled up to witness what happened next. With numerous emergency personnel around the SUV, it began to move with the medic partially inside the vehicle.
The SUV struck a parked firetruck occupied by firefighters, and Oley Township Fire Chief Michael Kline’s unoccupied personal vehicle.
The medic was eventually able to pull away and move clear of the SUV.
Konchan proceeded east onto Covered Bridge Road at a high speed, continuing into Earl Township and finally into Amity Township, illegally passing other vehicles and running stop signs along the way.
The chase lasted about 11 miles with Konchan driving at speeds reaching about 90 mph. It ended when Konchan pulled into the Amity Township Fire Company parking lot on Pine Forge Road and he was taken into custody without incident.
Konchan told officers that he didn’t remember when the incident started and got scared when he realized police were chasing him. He admitted using fentanyl and cocaine about a half-hour before the incident.
Police found several packets of suspected fentanyl in his wallet.
Konchan of the first block of Mimosa Circle was taken to Reading Hospital for unspecified treatment before being taken to the central processing center.
He remained free to await a hearing following arraignment before District Judge Steven M. Chieffo in Reading Central Court.
Konchan faces charges of aggravated assault, fleeing and eluding an officer, driving under the influence of a controlled substance, hit-and-run and drug possession, along with numerous summary traffic offenses.
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