Multiple criminal and traffic charges are being filed this afternoon against a suspect who is under arrest and a Baltimore Police officer is undergoing treatment for what are believed to be non-life threatening injuries after a late morning police pursuit down the Baltimore Washington Parkway ended at an Anne Arundel County mall.
The accused is identified as Darin L. Sympton, Jr., 22, of Brooklyn Park, MD. He is being charged with possession with intent to distribute both heroin and marijuana, possession of both heroin and marijuana, fleeing and eluding, resisting arrest, multiple counts of assault, driving on a suspended/revoked license, and other traffic charges. After processing, he will be taken before a court commissioner for an initial bond hearing later tonight.
The officer from the Baltimore Police Department who was injured was involved in a single vehicle traffic crash during the pursuit. He was transported by ambulance to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
At about 11:30 a.m. today, a Maryland state trooper from the Glen Burnie Barrack was patrolling the Baltimore Washington Parkway near the city line when he observed a 1998 Honda Accord being pursued by a Baltimore Police Department patrol officer southbound on the parkway out of the city. The trooper joined the pursuit as it headed away from the city and into Anne Arundel County.
Just south of I-195, the suspect, later identified as Sympton, apparently attempted to ram the Baltimore police officer�s patrol car. The officer took evasive action, which resulted in his car leaving the roadway and coming to rest in the median. The investigation into what occurred in that crash is still continuing.
The pursuit continued south on the parkway at speeds up to 100 mph. Sympton took the exit to the Arundel Mills Mall, striking several civilian cars as he continued into the mall parking lot. Sympton bailed out of the car near the entrance to the movie theatres and ran into the mall.
The trooper pursued Sympton on foot. Sympton threw multiple items at the trooper as they ran through the mall. The suspect ran into a clothing store, where he was arrested by the initial pursuing trooper and other state troopers who had responded to the mall to assist. No one in the mall was injured during the pursuit and arrest.
Troopers recovered more than a dozen caplets of suspected heroin and several bags of suspected marijuana from Sympton. He was transported back to the Glen Burnie Barrack for processing.
Baltimore Police Department officers report that prior to the pursuit, Sympton had been observed participating in a suspected drug deal in the city. Due to his behavior while being observed, officers also believed he may have been armed with a gun. When the patrol officer attempted to stop Sympton, he refused to stop and the pursuit was initiated.
A gun has not been recovered at this time. Troopers will be processing the car the suspect was driving for that and other evidence. The car was not stolen, but was not registered to Sympton.
