Three charged after police pursuit in Idaho Falls

IDAHO FALLS — A 38-year-old Idaho Falls man was arrested and charged after allegedly driving from police in his vehicle and ditching it with two passengers inside.

James Tyler Sinclair was charged with felony attempting to elude an officer. The incident happened in August. Charges were filed in court in November.

According to the affidavit of probable cause filed by the Idaho Falls Police Department, on Aug. 2, around 5:50 p.m., an officer was told about a black Chrysler with a temporary license plate and was given information that the occupants of the vehicle were possibly involved in drug-related offenses.

It was later discovered that Sinclair was the driver. Ashlianne Cook, 37, and Brock Loveland, 27, were passengers.

An officer found the vehicle in the southbound turn lane on John Adams Parkway at the South Holmes intersection. The officer recognized the vehicle from a traffic stop the previous month, documents said.

The officer tried to stop Sinclair, but he sped away. Sinclair allegedly drove into oncoming traffic, and he almost collided with a vehicle.

Sinclair then drove 50 to 60 miles per hour and almost broadsided a white truck. He drove through a solid red light, documents said.

“Sinclair’s driving was so dangerous and reckless that I did not believe it was safe to continue the pursuit,” the officer wrote.

Loveland’s arrest

The officer turned northbound onto June Avenue and went down 16th Street. The officer saw Loveland walking and stopped him.

Loveland was found with a pink rubber tube with a white dusty residue inside the tube. Loveland was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor use or possession with intent to use drug paraphernalia.

Court records show Loveland accepted a plea agreement in another case against him that dismissed related charges in this case. He is scheduled for sentencing in December.

Cook’s arrest

A deputy with the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office detained the other passenger, Cook, in an alley nearby. The deputy who found Cook had arrested her in the past on charges of possession of a controlled substance, court documents said.

The deputy told her she was being stopped because she had run from a vehicle that had just recently tried to escape the police. She told the deputy she didn’t have any knowledge of the incident. The officer searched her purse and found a plastic bag of what appeared to be methamphetamine. The officer also located several items of drug paraphernalia inside the purse, including a scale.

The deputy questioned Cook and asked her where she was coming from. Cook originally said she was coming from Goodwill but later admitted that she was a passenger in the backseat of the Chrysler that had fled police, documents said. Cook told the deputy the vehicle was ditched at the Lowe’s parking lot off 17th Street.

Cook was charged with two counts of felony possession of a controlled substance, one misdemeanor charge of possession of a controlled substance, and felony major contraband introduced into a correctional facility. She pleaded guilty to the major contraband charge as part of a plea agreement. The other three charges were dismissed. She is scheduled for sentencing in January.

Sinclair’s arrest

Law enforcement located the vehicle abandoned with the driver-side door left open and stopped against a stack of lumber at Lowe’s.

The vehicle was searched by police. They found two round blue pills with “30” stamped on one side and “M” stamped on the other. The officer recognized the blue pills to be consistent with fentanyl. The officer found 12 pieces of unused aluminum foil and one piece that had brown burnt residue in it.

Officers were later told by a couple that was walking that they had seen a man with soaked clothing running from the canal near 14th street and Spratt. The description matched Sinclair. However, officers could not find him.

An Idaho Falls police spokeswoman told EastIdahoNews.com that Sinclair was arrested in September on different charges. He was found at a local hotel. Since he had been sitting in jail, a warrant was served in November on the felony attempting to elude an officer charge.

Sinclair is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Nov. 23 at 1 p.m. at the Bonneville County Courthouse.