Hiddenite Man Leads Deputy On Lawn Mower Chase !

In law enforcement, sometimes a suspect will attempt to flee either on foot or by vehicle. This story is about a vehicle chase (a slow one) that happened this weekend in Alexander County.

On Saturday, Alexander County 911 received a complaint from a citizen about a man driving a lawnmower on Sulpher Srings Road in Hiddenite. An Alexander County Deputy responded and sure enough, a man on a lawnmower was spotted creeping down the roadway. The subject operating the mower was in no mood to cooperate. He led the deputy on a pursuit, slow of speed but pretty determined not to halt. The suspect finally pulled off the roadway after a sloth-like chase.

62-year-old Robert Anthony Howse of Hiddenite was charged with flee to elude arrest with a motor vehicle, impeding traffic at slow speed, failure to heed blue light and siren, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest. Howse was placed in the Alexander County Jail under a bond of $4,000.

The mower was impounded !

Photo: Alexander County Sheriff’s Office