Reckless Driver arrested after motorcycle accident and pursuit

On Thursday afternoon, at approx. 4:07 PM, the Beltrami County 911 dispatch center began receiving a high number of phone calls regarding a reckless vehicle in the area of Irvine Avenue (CR 15) and Town Hall Road in Northern Twp. The callers all gave a same or similar description of a silver colored pickup truck being driven in an erratic manner. At 4:09 PM, the Beltrami County 911 dispatch center received a report that a motorcyclist had been struck by a silver pickup near the intersection of US 71 and Jordan Court in Northern Twp. The motorcyclist was stopped at the time when the vehicle intentionally struck the bike, tipping the motorcyclist and bike over onto the ground. The truck then drove over the motorcycle and fled the scene. The motorcyclist was able to provide a vehicle description and license plate number of the silver colored pick up that had struck him. The motorcyclist received minor injuries and was later treated at the Sanford Hospital Emergency Department-Bemidji.

During the same time period that the motorcyclist was struck, the Beltrami County 911 dispatch center continued to receive phone calls from the traveling public describing reckless erratic driving behavior of a silver pickup truck with a matching license plate number of that, which had struck the motorcyclist. The direction of travel and location was described as traveling north on Irvine Avenue from the area of Town Hall Rd.

At 5:03 PM, a Beltrami County Deputy located the suspect vehicle in the City of Bemidji being driven in a very erratic manner and attempted to stop the vehicle, the vehicle failed to stop and a pursuit ensued from the City of Bemidji east onto US 2 towards Cass Lake. Leech Lake Tribal Police were able to effectively deploy a tire deflation device that flattened the vehicles tires that eventually stopped the vehicle. The female driver, identified as Grace Catherine Robia, age 26, of Pinewood, MN was taken into custody without incident and is currently being held in the Beltrami County Jail pending formal review of criminal charges by the Beltrami County Attorney’s Office.

During the pursuit a stopped Bemidji Police Car was intentional struck by the fleeing vehicle as it was stopped on the side of the roadway. Bemidji Police and Beltrami County Deputies later received 4 more reports of the vehicle driven by Robia striking their vehicle causing property damage. No other reports of injuries were received.

The Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Bemidji Police Department, Minnesota State Patrol, Leech Lake Police Department and Cass County Sheriff’s Office.

Respectfully submitted by:

Ernie Beitel

Chief Deputy Sheriff