Sheldon — A Hull man has been arrested on felony weapons and misdemeanor OWI and eluding charges, after a short pursuit in Sheldon.
According to a criminal complaint filed with the O’Brien County Clerk of Court’s Office by the Sheldon Police Department, 39-year-old Vincent Perez Martinez of Hull is accused of driving drunk while in possession of a weapon after an earlier felony conviction. He was arrested on Saturday.
In his statement, the officer says he attempted to stop the vehicle Perez Martinez was driving, due to window tint. The officer says as he was catching up to Perez Martinez, Perez Martinez began to speed up. The officer says when he activated the emergency lights on his patrol car, Perez Martinez did not stop for the stop sign at Washington Avenue and 5th Street as he turned east on 5th Street. The officer says Perez Martinez then almost hit a car as he drove east on 5th Street. When he got to the stop sign for 5th and Normal College Avenue, the officer says Perez Martinez again did not stop, but then sped up and pulled into a residence on Normal College Avenue. The officer says Perez Martinez was then taken out of the vehicle at gun point where he was then handcuffed. The officer says there were also signs that Perez Martinez had recently consumed alcohol. Plus, during a search, officers say they found multiple rounds of 9mm ammunition in the vehicle, which, as a convicted felon, Perez Martinez is not allowed to own.
Perez Martinez was charged with dominion or control of a firearm or offensive weapon by a felon, a class D felony. If convicted, Perez Martinez could face up to five years in prison. He also faces misdemeanor charges of operating while intoxicated, eluding, possession of drug paraphernalia, reckless driving, dark window tint, and two counts of failure to obey a stop sign.
He faces a preliminary hearing on May 29th.
Perez Martinez was released from the O’Brien County Jail the day after his arrest after posting a $2000 cash or surety bond.
