CHARLOTTE, N.C. — An Indian Trail man is facing charges after he was caught with stolen police gear during a multi-county chase, Monroe Police said.
The incident started when Union County deputies attempted to pull over Roger Burns III for a fake license plate. However, deputies allege that Burns intentionally hit a patrol car and sped off. Burns then allegedly drove onto I-485 at a high rate of speed. A deputy performed a "forced vehicle stop" and the chase ended in Mecklenburg County. The car he was driving was reported stolen in York County, investigators said.
Officers recovered several stolen items, including a bulletproof vest, handcuffs and federal agent credentials. Detectives allege that Burns had a replica handgun, holster and removable strobe lights in his possession. The officers also allegedly found methamphetamine and fentanyl they claim Burns threw out of the car during the chase.
The Union County Sheriff's Office recently released numbers from its crackdown on fraudulent license plates, saying deputies processed over 200 charges during a 24-hour operation in June. Those charges included DWI, felony drug charges and DMV violations.
Union County deputies have seized over 1,000 forged or fictitious license plates since January 2023, primarily in the Indian Trail area.
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