AMARILLO, TEXAS -- Thursday morning around 3:05, a man entered the Super 8 Motel at 2103 Lakeside. Wearing a black ski mask, gloves, and carrying a handgun he tried to rob the motel. Luckily the clerk saw the man approaching and was able to safely hide behind an office door.
The man jumped the counter and tried to complete the robbery but could not get to the clerk. The suspect left the scene without any money.
A description of the man was sent out to police. An hour and a half later, an officer patrolling motels along I-40 saw a vehicle that appeared to be prowling the area. The officer saw the suspicious pickup run a red light at I-40 and Nelson. He then attempted to stop the pickup, but the driver wouldn't pull over.
The driver began trying to escape the officer, and initiated a pursuit that began south on Nelson. Police were able to set up spikes at Wolflin to flatten his tires, but the driver continued his chase. The pursuit finally came to an end at I-40 and Soncy, when the driver tried to make a right turn but was unable to control the vehicle and ran up onto the concrete overpass ramp.
The suspect, 43-year-old Charles Wheat Jr., of Amarillo was the only person inside the pickup. During the pursuit officers could see that Wheat was wearing gloves. However additional investigation didn't provide any evidence that he was in any way connected to the attempted motel robbery.
The pickup was stolen from an apartment complex parking lot in the 4200 block of S. Western last Friday. The license plate had been replaced with a dealer tag.
Wheat was arrested and booked into the Potter County Correctional Center on preliminary charges of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and evading arrest in a motor vehicle.
