ATLANTIC CITY – A Villas man was arrested in Atlantic City on eluding and drug charges after fleeing police by driving down the boardwalk and later attempting to flee on foot.
Anthony Friel, 49, had been spotted by a citizen apparently asleep at the wheel of his vehicle while stopped at a traffic light at the intersection of Arkansas and Atlantic avenues.
Atlantic City Police Department officers Bao Pham and Robert Thompson responded to the call, which came in Aug. 21 at 10:18 a.m., according to a press release from the city Police Department. Other 911 calls reporting the same incident were coming in as the officers responded.
As they arrived, the driver, later identified as Friel, appeared to be asleep. Pham attempted to determine Friel’s condition when Friel woke up, saw the officers, and immediately fled in his vehicle.
Officers followed Friel as he drove recklessly toward the boardwalk. He drove his vehicle through a barricade on Arkansas Avenue and then drove down the boardwalk.
Officers did not pursue him on the boardwalk, and he eventually exited at Mississippi Avenue, driving through a second barricade and continuing onto the Atlantic City Expressway.
A short time later, Friel returned to Atlantic City, and officers spotted his vehicle near Huron Avenue. They engaged in a second pursuit, and Friel ultimately stopped his vehicle and fled on foot.
He was apprehended by officer Ivaylo Penchev and Sgt. Chris Miller and taken into custody. Police said Friel was found in possession of six bags of heroin.
During the incident, there were no injuries to anyone.
Friel was charged with two counts of eluding, possession of a controlled dangerous substance, criminal mischief, two counts of resisting arrest, endangering another person and obstruction of justice, and was remanded to the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
Anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact the Atlantic City Police Department Criminal Investigations Unit at 609-347-5766 or submit a text anonymously to tip411 (847411); begin the text with ACPD.
