Woodbury Man Leads Police On High-Speed Chase

A Woodbury man with an outstanding arrest warrant didn’t want to go to jail—or at least that’s what he allegedly told a Minnesota State Patrol officer after leading police on a high-speed chase through Inver Grove Heights.

Mark Dontrell Phillips, 24, faces one felony count of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle and one felony count of unlawfully possessing a firearm.

Phillips faces a maximum of three years in prison and a $5,000 fine if convicted on the first count. For unlawfully possessing a firearm, Phillips faces up to of 15 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.

The chase began when an on-duty state patrol trooper along Interstate 494 spotted a silver minivan enter onto the freeway from Dodd Boulevard while traveling 73 mph in a 60 mph zone, according to the criminal complaint.

The officer attempted to pull the vehicle over on the shoulder of 494 near Delaware Avenue, but the vehicle never came to a full stop, and sped off before the officer could approach the van.

The van led the officer on a chase eastbound on 494, before exiting onto Robert Street in Inver Grove Heights, according to the complaint. From there, the van led police on a winding route through Inver Grove Heights and along southbound Highway 52.

After exiting on 80^th Street, the driver eventually lost control of the van, which slid into a ditch and hit a tree. At one point during the chase, the van reached speeds in excess of 100 mph.

Police put all four occupants of the vehicle in handcuffs and then searched the vehicle. They found a loaded 12-gauge, sawed-off shotgun on the floor between the rear passenger seats, according to the complaint.

Under Minnesota law, a person convicted of a felony-level “crime of violence” or drug offense cannot possess a firearm. Phillips has a prior felony drug conviction from 2009. He is being held at the Dakota County Jail. His next court date is scheduled for Aug. 29.

To view the original criminal complaint, click on the PDF file attached to the story.