POCATELLO — A 40-year-old local man was recently arrested after allegedly leading officers on a high-speed chase on busy residential roads that ended with a brief foot pursuit.

Michael Lee Pongah, of Bannock County, has been charged with eluding police, possession of meth and fentanyl and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, all felonies, as well as possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest, both misdemeanors, following the ordeal.

The incident began to unfold around 4 p.m. on Saturday when Pocatello police observed a silver 2006 Chevrolet Monte Carlo in the area of West Cedar Street and Moreland Avenue without a license plate, according to police records the Idaho State Journal recently obtained.

The vehicle initially came to a stop on the 600 block of Richland Avenue and the police officer that observed the vehicle initiated his emergency lights and began to conduct a traffic stop, the report says.

The driver of the Monte Carlo, later identified as Pongah, waited for a car to pass and then fled the scene at a high rate of speed, police said.

Pongah continued to evade police on several busy residential streets in Pocatello, failing to stop at numerous stop signs and reaching speeds in excess of 70 mph in zones posted no higher than 35 mph, according to the report.

Near the intersection of Poleline Road and Tanager Street, Pocatello police discontinued the pursuit for safety reasons though officers in the area continued to visually observe the vehicle, police said.

Pongah was observed traveling through the Pine Ridge Mall parking lot and into the Home Depot Parking lot at high rates of speed where he almost caused three separate accidents, said police, adding that a Chubbuck police officer then observed Pongah turn onto Burley Drive and Linden Street in Chubbuck.

At the intersection of Burley and Linden, Pongah attempted to abandon the vehicle and flee the scene on foot but was quickly apprehended by Chubbuck police officers while he was frantically knocking on the doors of homes in the area, the report says.

After Pongah was taken into custody, officers deployed a K-9 to the scene and the dog indicated that there were illegal narcotics inside the car, police said.

Officers searched the car and located multiple baggies that contained suspected methamphetamine, a crushed fentanyl pill, drug paraphernalia and a loaded Taurus G3C 9mm pistol under the driver’s seat, the report says.

Pongah was subsequently charged, arrested and booked inside the Bannock County Jail in Pocatello.

He appeared in front of 6th District Magistrate Judge Steven Thomsen on Monday for an arraignment hearing, during which his bond was set at $20,000.

He is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on June 20, which will involve local prosecutors attempting to prove there is enough evidence against him to elevate the case from the magistrate to district court level for trial.

If convicted of all the felony charges filed against him, Pongah faces up to 24 years in prison and a fine of up to $85,000.