A man arrested Sunday after leading deputies on a pursuit through west Casper turned out to be the same man who fled from Casper police officers Friday night after allegedly "hitting a can of dust off" at a skate park.

Kenneth Koons, 42, was initially charged with five misdemeanors: two counts of driving under suspension, reckless driving, driving without an ignition interlock device, eluding and possession of methamphetamine.

During his initial appearance Monday afternoon in Natrona County Circuit Court, Koons pleaded no contest to the balance of the charges, and the state subsequently dismissed the eluding charge and one count of driving under suspension initially filed in connection with Friday's incident.

Koons, who recently served 45 days in jail on a drug charge, was sentenced to six months on each charge, with those jail terms running concurrently. He will be eligible for a sentence review after completing a substance abuse evaluation.

According to court documents, Koons started his weekend off Friday night at the skate park behind the Boys and Girls Club on East K Street. At about 8:30 p.m., someone called police and reported Koons was high on drugs, drinking from a bottle of alcohol and hitting a can of dust off.

Koons' antics at the skate park were captured by a person who requested to be identified only as Tee Jay. He later posted the video to his Facebook page.

Police arrived to find Koons in the driver's seat of a silver Toyota Avalon with temporary tags. Charging papers say Koons had his eyes closed and was screaming at the ceiling.

"The driver of the vehicle [Koons] dropped his head, opened his eyes, and mouthed the words, "Oh f---" and completed a J-turn and drove out of the parking lot of the Boys and Girls Club at speeds upwards of 80 mph towards F Street," the police affidavit reads.

An officer gave chase as Koons' speed surpassed an estimated 100 mph as he passed Elma, Washington, Jackson, McKinley, St. Mary and Jefferson Streets.

The officer reached 76 mph before terminating the chase due to unsafe speeds. Koons, however, allegedly continued past Lincoln, Glenarm, Grant, Park, Kimball, St. John, Beech and Durbin, blowing through stop signs at speeds in excess of an estimated 110 mph.

Court documents say Koons went westbound on H Street, going through stop signs at every intersection starting from Lincoln, until the officer lost sight of him at H Street and Wolcott.

Police did not find Koons that night.

Then, at about 11:30 a.m. Sunday, a park ranger called the Natrona County Sheriff's Office to report a suspicious man -- Koons -- on Fremont Canyon Road.

Hikers had told the ranger they were intimidated by Koons' "erratic behavior." When the ranger found him, Koons was reportedly "pacing, yelling, and throwing rocks and a knife."

Deputies went out to the area and found the silver Toyota Avalon eastbound on Kortes Road, toward deputies. Koons reportedly sped up as soon as he saw deputies.

Two deputies gave chase, estimating Koons' speed at roughly 80-100 mph on Kortes Road. They couldn't catch Koons, who turned east onto Highway 220.

Traffic conditions on the highway did not allow for a safe pursuit. Koons, meanwhile, was driving an estimated 100 mph, passing multiple vehicles in an unsafe manner.

It wasn't long before Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers and Casper police officers found Koons on 220, still driving over 100 mph. Koons was allegedly weaving in and out of traffic, recklessly passing other drivers.

Near mile marker 103, a state trooper reportedly gauged Koons' speed at 116 mph. Officers followed him, but again lost sight of Koons near Wyoming Boulevard.

A few minutes later, Casper police officers found Koons' empty vehicle in the parking lot of the west side Walmart. Officers went into Walmart, found Koons and arrested him without incident.

At the time of his arrest, Koons had a Camel snus container in his pocket with methamphetamine residue inside.

Court documents say Koons, as a result of a previous arrest, is required to use an ignition interlock device on his vehicle until 2095.

The Toyota Avalon, police later discovered, belonged to a woman who said she did not give Koons permission to take the car.

 

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