Jay Vinroe

A Butler Township man is accused of running from police after they tried to conduct a traffic stop Friday in northern Butler County.

Police said Jay E. Vinroe, 53, managed to elude troopers the first time, but was arrested later that night when he tried to flee again.

District Judge Sue Haggerty arraigned Vinroe on Saturday on a felony charge of fleeing or attempting to elude police and a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest. He also is charged with six traffic violations.

He is being held in the Butler County Prison in lieu of $5,000 bond as well as a bench warrant in connection with an unrelated police pursuit last year.

Police said that while assisting a bail bondsman with a warrant service on Vinroe about 5:50 p.m., they attempted to stop him on a motorcycle on Route 173 in Slippery Rock Township.

But he eluded the traffic stop, police said, and drove away at a “high rate of speed” before traveling through a nearby field. He fled on foot into the woods.

But around 9:45 p.m., police arrested Vinroe after he allegedly attempted to flee a second time.

Court records showed that Vinroe, at the time of his arrest, was on pretrial supervision in connection with a prior arrest by Butler police after he allegedly led them on an Oct. 5 pursuit in a pickup.

An officer pursued him out of the city and into Butler Township before he crashed the truck into the side of the Sherwood Lanes building. He fled but was found a short time later.

Police noted that the bowling alley was open and there were customers inside. No one was injured.

The defendant is charged in that pending case with fleeing or attempting to elude police, driving under the influence and hit-and-run. A warrant was issued June 5 for him in the case.