LEWISTON — A Hartford man was arrested early Wednesday after leading police on a chase from Turner into Lewiston.
Police said 46-year-old Adam Boutot drove across the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge on three deflated tires before he was arrested by force outside a Lewiston hospital.
Boutot was charged with a slew of crimes, including domestic assault, failure to stop, refusing to submit to arrest, obstructing the report of a crime and violating conditions of release after earlier arrests connected to unrelated crimes.
The drama began around midnight, police said, when a couple was reported fighting while driving on Route 4 in Turner. After the couple were heard screaming inside the car, which was being driven erratically, deputies from the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office attempted to stop the vehicle.
But Boutot refused to stop, police said, driving down Route 4 at times at at 20 mph over the speed limit. At one point, the driver did pull over, police said, but soon drove off again. His wife, police said, exited the vehicle before the chase continued into Auburn.
Auburn police, alerted to the pursuite, set up a spike mat just short of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge.
When Boutot drove over the mat, police said, three of his tires were deflated, yet he continued over the bridge and into Lewiston where he made his way down Main Street, to College Street, to Russell Street and eventually to St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center.
At one point during the pursuit, police learned that Boutot may be suicidal. When the car came to a stop outside the hospital, police from the three agencies proceeded carefully. But soon after stopping, police said, Boutot tried to drive off one more time, hitting another spike mat and deflating the fourth tire.
Police attempted to speak with Boutot, who refused to come out of the vehicle. Ultimately, police had to force their way into the car and use chemical spray to arrest Boutot, who was taken first into St. Mary’s for evaluation and later to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn.
He was being held at the jail without bail later Wednesday.
Boutot’s wife, who had been a passenger in the vehicle in the early part of the pursuite, was examined for minor injuries suffered during the ordeal, police said.
Boutot has a criminal history in the area of assaults and violating protection orders. He was arrested on the latter charge in Oxford County in July. Boutot’s wife, who had been a passenger in the vehicle, was examined for minor injuries at the scene, police said.When he was taken into custody Wednesday morning, Boutot was arrested on a warrant out of that county charging him with violating conditions of his earlier release from jail.
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