Police line. Photo by James Short.
A routine traffic stop on May 20 at a gas station turned into a recovery of a stolen vehicle.
A routine traffic stop turned into a police chase the morning of May 20 when a North Wales man fled a Levittown gas station, leading to an arrest and the recovery of a stolen vehicle, according to court papers.
Christopher Gonzalez, 20, was detained at the intersection of Parkside Circle and Plumbridge Drive, police said.
Gonzalez remains at Bucks County Correctional Facility in lieu of 10% of $75,000 bail, according to court records. He was arraigned May 20 before Magisterial District Judge Kevin Wagner and charged with conspiracy to receive stolen property, receiving stolen property, corruption of minors, and loitering and prowling at night.
Authorities said the incident began around 3:15 a.m. at the Exxon gas station at the intersection of New Falls Road and Bristol-Oxford Valley Road. A Bristol Township police officer attempted to stop a white Kia Soul in the parking lot when the driver suddenly accelerated, fleeing down New Falls Road and into the nearby Plumbridge neighborhood.
The pursuit ended on Parkside Circle, where five people exited the vehicle and scattered in different directions, police said.
The vehicle was found with significant damage to its steering and ignition and was abandoned by the suspects, police said. Officers quickly responded and set up a perimeter around the area.
Footage from an officer’s car captured Gonzalez exiting the rear passenger side and running onto adjacent property, police said.
Gonzalez, who was later found to have been wearing a distinctive black hooded sweater with shark teeth design, is believed to have been inside the stolen Kia Soul along with a juvenile and the others, police said.
The recovered Kia was valued at about $9,000 was reported stolen from nearby Mill Drive, police said.
The owner of the vehicle told officers she had not given permission for her vehicle to be used, police said.
Officers reportedly found the shark-tooth sweater discarded behind a residence on Parkside Circle.
The property owner of the Parkside Circle home where the sweater was found confirmed that Gonzalez did not have permission to enter the premises, police said.
No court papers were filed that indicated the identity or whether the other people in the vehicle were arrested.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 5 at 1 p.m. before Wagner.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
