AUGUSTA — A city man was ordered held in lieu of $5,000 cash bail Wednesday after an early morning car chase that police said reached speeds over 100 mph and ended with a crash on Prescott Road in Manchester.
Blyn Eric Nadeau Jr., 27, formerly of Bingham and Moscow, made an initial appearance at the Capital Judicial Center via video from the Kennebec County jail on seven charges related to the incident: aggravated operating after habitual offender revocation, operating after revocation, eluding an officer, criminal speed, driving to endanger, leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage and failure to report an accident.
The charges are all dated Wednesday, and the complaint says they all occurred in Manchester and Augusta.
Nadeau, who was taken to MaineGeneral Medical Center by police before being taken to the jail, fell asleep while waiting to appear in front of the judge during the in-custody hearings and was awakened by others at the jail.
The chase began shortly after midnight, according to Augusta police.
City police broke off the chase near Summerhaven Road after speeds topped 100 mph, according to a court affidavit by Deputy Jeffrey Boudreau, of the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office.
Boudreau said he responded from Manchester to a report of the speeder and located the white 2008 Mercury Milan just off Prescott Road, upside down in a ditch with extensive damage and no driver.
He called for assistance and began searching for the driver.
“Due to the extensive damage, I believed that the operator was ejected and possibly roadside in the adjacent woods or ditch,” he said.
After a search of the area, including a search by a police dog, Boudreau wrote that a homeowner farther down Prescott Road called police to say a man was pounding at the door.
Deputies and state police found Nadeau there, Boudreau said, adding that Nadeau appeared to be in pain and had “fresh cuts on his nose, neck and back.”
He was taken to the hospital by Winthrop Ambulance.
Boudreau said Nadeau admitted seeing an Augusta cruiser flashing its blue lights in an attempt to stop him.
Assistant District Attorney David Spencer told the judge, “Summerhaven Road is certainly not a highway.”
He listed a series of Nadeau’s prior convictions, including a habitual offender conviction from 2015 for which Nadeau spent nine months and a day in prison.
“This defendant shouldn’t be driving, and he put others on the road at extreme risk,” Spencer said.
Attorney Lisa Whittier, lawyer of the day, argued for a lower bail, saying Nadeau would be unable to come up with $10,000.
Judge Eric Walker refused, telling Nadeau that, according to what he read in the affidavit and his prior criminal history, “I think you are a significant risk to the public.”
A condition of bail prohibits Nadeau from driving any vehicle for any reason.
Betty Adams — 621-5631
Twitter: @betadams
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