BEDFORD – A Kentucky man was arrested on Thursday, April 6th after a FLOCK camera alerted police to a possible stolen gold 2000 Ford Explorer traveling north on State Road 37 from US 50.
A Bedford Police officer spotted the vehicle traveling north on State Road 37, north of 5th Street.
The driver was 20-year-old Seth Coomes. There was a female passenger in the vehicle. The officer initiated a traffic stop at State Road 37 at Main Street in Oolitic. The vehicle made an abrupt U-turn and traveled south on State Road 37 at a high rate of speed. The vehicle continued to travel into the grass median and then into the northbound lanes. The vehicle went off the road down a steep hill and crashed into a metal wire fence and traveled onto Walsh Avenue. The vehicle then turned onto 2nd Street and then Indiana Avenue where the officer lost sight of the vehicle. A bystander pointed to the officer the vehicle went west toward Milwaukee Avenue.
The officer located the vehicle abandoned beside a red barn near 230 Milwaukee Avenue.
Seth Commes came around the west side of the barn with his arms extended while pointing a black object toward the ground. The officer believed that the item was a gun.
Commes was told to drop the item and show the officer his hands. Commes then took off running behind the barn.
The officer deployed canine Zazu who bit Commes and took him to the ground. Commes was ordered to stop fighting the dog. Once Zazu released Commes, he walked over to the police car, grabbed the dog, and began hitting Zazu in the head multiple times. The officer then hit Commes to get him to stop resisting. Commes continued to resist the officer and was tased.
Other officers arrived on the scene and Commes was detained. An ambulance was called to the scene to treat Commes’ bite wound.
While waiting for the ambulance Commes, who was on the ground, attempted to move his cuffed hands from behind him. He was then placed in the back of a patrol car. While placing Commes in the car he continued to forcibly resist and kicked at the officers. He was able to get both handcuffed hands from behind him to in front of him during the struggle.
Police were unable to locate the female passenger but canine Maximus was able to track the woman and found her hiding under a porch at 230 Milwaukee Avenue.
Coomes was later escorted to an ambulance, where he was treated and medically cleared. He was transported to the Lawrence County Jail.
While en route to the jail, he became irate when he found out the female had been found and repeatedly slammed his head off of the partition and window guards.
Maximus alerted officers to possible drugs in the Ford Explorer. Police found a glass smoking pipe with meth residue and a plastic baggy containing crystal meth.
The female told police that Commes had taken her against her will and she complied with his wishes out of fear. Evansville Police did confirm that when the vehicle was reported stolen the caller had reported the female had been taken against her will and forced into the vehicle. The woman told police she attempted to jump from the vehicle at the time of her abduction but Commes had punched her in the face.
After leaving Evansville, Commer took her to Henderson, Kentucky, and then to Owensboro, KY where he drove around. After Commes got money from his grandmother he then headed to Chicago, IL.
The female said she ran from the scene because she was wanted on a warrant in Vanderburgh County and was afraid to go to jail. The warrant was confirmed but Vanderburg County refused to extradite the woman.
Commes refused to cooperate and speak to the police. He did deny kidnapping the woman and denied the drugs belonged to him.
Commes was also wanted on an active warrant in Vanderburg County and there was an active protective order in place preventing Commes to be near the woman.
