STRUTHERS Poland man sentenced in chase, theft

STRUTHERS -- A Poland man who led police on a chase from Struthers to Austintown will spend the next six months behind bars.
Keith J. Grzelewski, 39, of 7093 North Lima Road, pleaded no contest in municipal court Friday to failing to comply with a police officer and theft. Judge James R. Lanzo found Grzelewski guilty and sentenced him to 180 days in jail on each count, with the sentences to be served concurrently, and fined him $200 plus costs on each charge.
Charges of resisting arrest, reckless operation and driving without headlights were dismissed.
Grzelewski was bound over to the Mahoning County grand jury on a theft charge.
Police account
Police say they arrested him Aug. 9 in Austintown after he sped away when officers tried to stop him on a traffic violation on Youngstown-Poland Road.
When police tried to pull him over, reports state, Grzelewski drove through Struthers to Interstate 680, to I-80 and then to state Route 46 in Austintown, where spike strips were deployed to flatten his tires.
Police said that after driving over the spike strips, Grzelewski lost control of his vehicle on an exit ramp, slid off the road and then took off on foot.
Police said they found him hiding in a drainage ditch.
Earlier in the day, the police report says, Grzelewski had crashed into a Girard cruiser while officers were pursuing him in connection with a theft from the Target store in Niles. Girard police also filed charges against Grzelewski.