A Falls Township man has been charged with fleeing a Pennsylvania State Police trooper last week.
Raymond William Wambold Jr., 36, was arraigned Wednesday on charges of fleeing or attempting to elude police, reckless endangerment, resisting arrest, and a number of summary traffic offenses. On-call District Judge Michael Gallagher set bail at $75,000 unsecured.
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In court papers, a trooper said he was conducting a patrol along I-295 in Lower Makefield Township last Friday around 9:30 p.m. when he spotted a gray Volkswagen Jetta speeding on wet roads following a rainstorm. The trooper went to catch up with the Jetta and reported watching it change lanes twice without using a turn signal.
“Immediately upon the activation of my emergency lights and sirens the vehicle was observed to accelerate in speed. While pursuing the fleeing vehicle on I-295, I clocked the vehicle utilizing my patrol unit’s speedometer at a speed of 131 mph in a posted 55 mph zone for a distance of approximately one-half mile,” the trooper wrote in court papers.
State police said the Jetta continued speeding on Route 1 and made at least a dozen lane changes without using turn signals while close to other vehicles on the highway. The vehicle was also reported to be passing on the shoulder, causing some vehicles to “take evasive action in order to avoid a collision with the Jetta.”
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The pursuit was terminated by the trooper on Route 1 near the Middletown Township and Langhorne Manor Borough border, state police said.
In Bensalem a short time later, the trooper reported spotting the vehicle, noting Jetta featured the plate “BEAWSUM.” The trooper got a look at the driver, state police said.
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The driver was later identified at Wambold, who had a suspended license as of last Friday, state police said.
Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.
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