Police chase fails to catch man who flashed children

12/11/2001

A man who exposed himself to Sylvania children yesterday eluded police, fleeing in a car that struck other vehicles while east|bound on West Alexis Road, police said.

Sylvania Township police who pursued the man to Toledo nearly had him cornered in heavy traffic on Alexis at Douglas Road about 4:20 p.m., township police said.

But the suspect used his vehicle to push aside a vehicle and flee again. Sylvania Township Sgt. Clarence Whalen said officers called off the pursuit for safety reasons. Nobody was seriously injured in the crashes.

The chase began when Sylvania police tried to stop a car on Rudyard Road after residents called to say a man had exposed himself to children minutes earlier on McGregor Lane and again on Altshelter Drive. A similar incident was reported about 3:30 p.m. on Flanders Road and High Oaks Boulevard in the township.

Witnesses described the man as a black male, 5-foot-7-inches tall, between 16 and 22 years old, wearing a black jacket. He was driving a late 1980s black Ford Tempo with no license plates.