A Montrose man was formally charged on Monday in connection with a high-speed police chase that began Friday night, April 4, in Eden Prairie and concluded in a crash and foot pursuit in Minneapolis.
Jerrold Preston Nagel, 33, is charged in Hennepin County District Court with two felonies: evading a peace officer in a motor vehicle and stealing a motor vehicle without the owner’s consent. Eden Prairie police apprehended him that night after a chase near Eden Prairie Centre.
He is still in detention at the Hennepin County Jail, with a $50,000 bail. His initial court appearance was planned for Tuesday, April 8, in Minneapolis.
According to the criminal complaint, a Flock license plate reader at Scheels in Eden Prairie Centre notified Eden Prairie police of a stolen vehicle shortly after 9 p.m. on April 4. Flock cameras scan passing license plates and notify authorities when vehicles are tagged as stolen or linked to crimes. Officers saw the vehicle, a black 2014 Buick Regal, exiting a local McDonald’s parking lot and attempted a traffic stop. The motorist, eventually identified as Nagel, escaped at high speeds.
According to police, the car reached speeds of more over 100 mph while travelling through Eden Prairie and into Minneapolis. A Minnesota State Patrol helicopter was dispatched to assist with tracking the car, prompting authorities to withdraw from the pursuit.
The car collided with another vehicle at an intersection in south Minneapolis but continued driving. The driver escaped on foot. Officers apprehended Nagel nearby.
Nagel informed officers that he had consumed methamphetamine and fentanyl. A search order was acquired for a blood draw, and he was sent to the hospital. After being released, he was sent to the Hennepin County Jail.
According to the lawsuit, the Buick was reported stolen earlier that day in Maplewood.
In 2015, Nagel received a felony conviction for driving while inebriated in North Dakota.
He is also facing other misdemeanour charges in Hennepin County in connection with a vehicle break-in in Maple Plain in 2022. In that case, filed earlier this year, he is suspected of causing damage to many automobiles and stealing sound equipment. The case went unsolved until October 2024, when authorities matched Nagel’s fingerprints to one of the automobiles, according to court papers.
