Maryland man accused of holding woman in car arrested after chase in Fayette County
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A Maryland man accused of holding a woman against her will was arrested after a police chase in Fayette County last week, according to state police.
State police said their Uniontown barracks got information on Jan. 20 that Roger Lee Strawser, 55, of Oakland, Md., was holding a woman against her will. He had been in a pursuit earlier that day in Garrett County, Md., with the woman in the car and got away.
The woman’s age and her relationship to Strawser, if any, were not provided.
Police said the woman asked Strawser to take her home, but he refused and drove to Fayette County. He would not let her out of the car, at times using the child locks to keep her inside.
Police said the woman was able to get away briefly and contacted family and friends in Maryland, who contacted the Garrett County Sheriff in Maryland and Pennsylvania State Police in Uniontown.
State police said troopers found Strawser’s vehicle in Hopwood. A 9-mile chase ensued, ending on Wharton Furnace Road near the West Virginia line when police used a pursuit intervention technique, or PIT maneuver, to stop his vehicle.
Police said that during the pursuit, two women could be seen in Strawser’s vehicle waving for help. No information on the second woman was provided.
Strawser, who was wanted on a warrant for a recent pursuit in Preston County, W. Va., was arrested and charged with false imprisonment, resisting arrest, unlawful restraint, drug possession, driving under the influence, fleeing and eluding, flight to avoid apprehension and numerous traffic citations.
Strawser was denied bail when he was arraigned Jan. 21 and was being held in the Fayette County Prison, according to court records. He was awaiting extradition.