Man who led police on 44-mile chase appears in court in Bemidji

A man from the Red Lake Indian Reservation in northwest Minnesota accused of firing shots at a house, leading police on a 44-mile chase and ramming a police car with his truck appeared in U.S. District Court in Bemidji on Thursday.

According to an FBI release, the Red Lake Police Department received an early morning call on June 12 that Edward Dean Cook, Sr., 53, was outside a residence, possibly with a gun.

Another Red Lake resident then called the police to tell them that her father, Cook, was drinking and driving with her 11-year-old son, the release said.

The initial caller called police to say someone was shooting at her house, the release said. A police officer arrived at the caller's house and saw a pickup truck leaving the area.

The police officer pursued Cook for roughly 44 miles before the driver pulled off the road. He then rammed his truck into the squad car.

Cook attempted to flee the scene in the truck, but got it stuck on a log, the release said. Police arrested Cook and found his 11-year-old grandson in the truck. They also found ammunition and cartridge casings.

The officer was unharmed, the release said.

FBI agents searched Cook's truck on June 24 after obtaining a federal search warrant and found shotgun shell casings, according to the release. After reviewing Cook's criminal history, an agent learned Cook has been twice convicted for assault on a federal officer or employee, the release said. Therefore, he is forbidden to possess a firearm or ammunition.

Cook had been in custody at the Red Lake Detention Facility since his arrest June 12, the release said. He was released Thursday, a jail official said.

Cook will have a federal detention hearing on July 5 at the federal courthouse in St. Paul.