A Council Bluffs man is in the Dallas County Jail Sunday morning after leading Dallas County law enforcement on a high-speed chase into Guthrie County Saturday night, where he then fled on foot into woods near Panora before being taken into custody near the Raccoon River Valley Trail.
The incident began when a Dallas County Deputy Sheriff attempted to stop a 1995 Honda Civic with a faulty taillight traveling westward on Iowa Highway 44 about 10:15 p.m. Saturday.
The driver of the Honda, Zackari Tyler Smith, 23, of Council Bluffs decided to try to flee. Smith drove westward on Iowa Highway 44 at speeds exceeding 90 mph, with the Dallas County deputy in hot pursuit.
The Guthrie County Sheriff’s office was alerted, and a deputy sheriff placed spike strips along Iowa Highway 44 east of Panora. Smith’s vehicle entered the ditch at one point but regained the roadway.
Smith drove to the southern end of S. 12th Street in Panora, where he abandoned his vehicle about 10:45 p.m. and fled southward on foot into a wooded area.
Dallas County deputies, Guthrie County deputies and Iowa State Patrol officers formed a perimeter around the area, and Smith was taken into custody without incident about 11 p.m. near the Raccoon River Valley bicycle trail.
Smith faces charges of eluding, possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of prescription drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia. He is being held on $2,000 bond.
Smith’s criminal record in Pottawattamie County includes convictions for assault in 2012, 2013 and 2015, convictions for burglary in 2015 and 2016 and prosecution for eluding in 2015. The eluding charges were dismissed.
