Pelham Police Arrest Robbery Suspect After High-Speed Chase

PELHAM, AL - A man was arrested Sunday morning after he led Pelham police on a high-speed chase on I-65.

Pelham police officers responded to a silent alarm at a convenience store in the 600 block of Cahaba Valley Road Sunday just after 5 a.m. When the first officer arrived, he saw a woman, later identified as a store clerk, standing at one of the gas pumps with a man. She made eye contact with our officer, pointed at the man and quickly walked away from him.

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The suspect, John Sharpe, then sped away toward I-65, according to the PPD report. Officers pursued the vehicle on I-65 South to exit 234 in Calera, when Sharpe took the exit and then entered the I-65 North exit ramp and began driving south in the northbound lanes. Officers forced the suspect off the road when they observed oncoming traffic. With the help of Alabaster Police and Calera Police, Sharpe was taken into custody.

Officers recovered money taken from the cash register, as well as a knife believed to be used to commit the robbery and hold the clerk against her will.

Sharpe is charged with the following: 1st Degree Robbery, Attempting to Elude Law Enforcement, Reckless Endangerment, Resisting Arrest, 1st Degree Kidnapping and 1st Degree Receiving Stolen Property. He is in the Shelby County Jail pending bond

Photo via Pelham Police Department