DEERWOOD-A 27-year-old St. Cloud man who took authorities on a high speed chase last week that started in Deerwood and lasted for 45 miles is facing criminal charges.
Jonathon D. Nesenson had his first appearance Monday in Crow Wing County District Court in Brainerd and was changed with two felonies-fifth-degree drug possession and fleeing peace officers in a vehicle.
According to the statement of probable cause filed against Nesenson, Crow Wing County Dispatch notified a Deerwood police officer at 5:10 p.m. June 23 that there was a male and female at the Woodland Apartments parking lot in Deerwood by a black car acting strange. They were taking things from the black car and putting them into their car. Dispatch advised the officer that it was now a possible domestic disturbance, as a witness reported the male had punched the female in the face.
The officer located the vehicle and the female got into the passenger side of the black Lincoln Continental and the male was standing and "looking very nervous," the complaint stated. The officer exited his squad car and approached the man, later identified as Nesenson, who stated the officer had no reason to be there. The officer explained the complaint and Nesenson then jumped into the vehicle and refused the officer's commands. The vehicle took off south through the apartment complex yard onto Maple Street.
The officer pursued the vehicle with emergency lights and sirens activated but the suspect vehicle would not stop. Nesenson drove at a high rate of speed through the grass yard of the address and fled the scene heading south on Maple Street, Deerwood Police Chief Mark Taylor stated in a news release. The vehicle then fled east on Highway 210 toward Aitkin. Speeds were in excess of 90 mph sometimes during the pursuit.
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Minnesota State Troopers put up road spikes and Nesenson drove over them, flattening the tires but he continued to drive the vehicle. A trooper eventually executed a Pursuit Intervention Technique, or PIT, maneuver where the squad car makes contact with a fleeing suspect vehicle, causing it to turn sideways, and stopped the vehicle near Aitkin County Road 7, west of Hill City, Taylor stated.
Nesenson was taken into custody. At the jail, the officer noticed a piece of tin foil sticking out of Nesenson's waistband. A tar-like substance was observed in the tin foil. It tested positive for heroin, the complaint stated. Authorities located several items of drug paraphernalia, including pipes, tinfoil with burnt residue, a mirror with white powder that tested positive for methamphetamine on it and a syringe.
Nesenson had warrants for his arrest in Benton County for fifth-degree controlled substance crime and in Stearns County for third-degree controlled substance crime. Nesenson also has prior felony convictions for fifth-degree possession of a controlled substance in 2016-17.
The Deerwood Police officer was assisted by officers from the Crosby, Aitkin and Hill City police departments, Aitkin County Sheriff's Department and Minnesota State Patrol.
