Bridgton police Friday arrested a man who they say was involved in a high-speed chase in a stolen car hours earlier.
Police arrested Aaron L. Tanguay, 23, of Maple Street in Portland, after he allegedly broke into the Greater Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce at 101 Portland Road about 8:30 a.m.
Tanguay apparently had sought shelter in the Chamber building, said Bridgton Police Chief Richard Stillman. Employees confronted Tanguay, who took off and was found by an officer a short distance away. Tanguay was soaking wet when arrested and he was wearing some T-shirts he had stolen from the business advocacy group, Stillman said.
Tanguay is alleged to be the man behind the wheel of a car that was traveling about 100 mph earlier that day when it passed a Cumberland County sheriff’s deputy’s vehicle on Route 302.
The deputy was driving south around 2 a.m. when he saw a car speeding toward him in the middle of the road, according to police. The deputy avoided the oncoming car and then tried to catch up to it. The deputy saw the car nearly strike a tractor-trailer on the causeway in Naples.
The deputy lost sight of the car as it traveled toward Bridgton at over 100 mph, according to the sheriff’s office. A second deputy who happened to be in the area deployed a spike mat near Bridgton Drive. The car hit the spikes, but continued toward Bridgton. The car was found about 30 seconds later crashed into the sign at R.G. Johnson Sporting Goods at 192 Portland Road, which is about a quarter mile away from the Chamber building.
The driver was last seen running from the vehicle, which was later determined to be stolen from Portland. A police dog searched unsuccessfully for the driver.
Tanguay faces charges of burglary, theft and criminal trespass and will likely face charges associated with the chase and theft of the car, Stillman said.
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