Man claiming to be DEA agent leads police on 40-minute chase after jail encounter, sheriff says
A Columbus man claiming to be a federal agent marched into the Muscogee County Jail on Wednesday night and tried to get three inmates released before fleeing law enforcement on a 40-minute chase from Columbus into Phenix City, and then back across the river through the north side of town, authorities said.
The chase finally ended on Blackmon Road, according to the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office.
Police charged Robert Earhart Jr. with multiple felonies after the chase, which began after the sheriff’s office got a tip Monday from the FBI that Earhart, of Pinewood Drive in Columbus, had made statements threatening law enforcement.
So when he entered the jail about 9 p.m. Wednesday “in an aggressive manner,” claiming to be a DEA agent, the staff ran a check that identified him.
Deputies who were called to the jail saw Earhart leaving in a 2014 black Honda Accord. Whey they tried to stop him at Veterans and 12th Street, he fled north on Second Avenue, raced into Phenix City, and then came back, crossing the county line into Harris County before he was stopped on Blackmon Road.
Along with Muscogee deputies and Columbus police, Russell County, Phenix City, Harris County officers joined the chase.
Earhart, 35, is charged with impersonating a law enforcement officer, reckless driving, felony obstruction of police, aggressive driving, fleeing from police and driving while his license was suspended.
This story was originally published May 2, 2019 at 8:41 PM.