By Sarah Schulz
sarah.schulz@theindependent.com

Joshua A. Matthiesen, 26, 2954 Highway 34, was charged Friday with felony failure to stop following an injury accident and operation of a vehicle to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, obstructing a police officer and resisting arrest, which are all misdemeanors. He was also charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, which is an infraction.

Matthiesen was arrested Thursday afternoon after a chase that started near the Philips interchange on Interstate 80 and ended in a pond south of Highway 34, according to the Nebraska State Patrol.

Lt. Jon Kraai said a trooper attempted to stop Matthiesen, who was driving a 2005 Kawasaki ZX600 motorcycle, for not having license plates.

Matthiesen fled north and turned west on Highway 34. The chase continued until Matthiesen and the trooper were just west of Blaine Street on Highway 34 and Matthiesen lost control of the motorcycle on loose gravel. He hit the guardrail on the west side of the bridge, said Sgt. Dan Bartling.

The trooper braked to avoid Matthiesen, hit the loose gravel and struck the guardrail, Bartling said.

Matthiesen fled on foot to the south of Highway 34 into an area of sandpit lakes and ponds. The trooper chased him with assistance from a Hall County Sheriff's deputy and a patrol dog, Bartling said.

The dog, trooper and deputy tracked Matthiesen to a pond where he was attempting to stay under water to avoid detection. He was arrested when he surfaced, Bartling said.

Speeds during the chase, which began at about 5:35 p.m. Friday and covered about seven miles, surpassed 100 mph, Kraai said.

Neither the trooper nor Matthiesen were seriously injured in the accident, but the patrol car was extensively damaged, Kraai said. He didn't know if the motorcycle was damaged in the incident.

Matthiesen's bond was set at 10 percent of $100,000. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. May 28.