Man leads Cedar Rapids police on chase through multiple cities

A man was arrested Tuesday after Cedar Rapids police say he led them on a chase across multiple cities that ended when he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a ditch off Interstate 80 in Coralville.

Dakota Michael Holt, 19, is charged with two counts of harboring a runaway minor against wishes of parent, assault on persons in certain occupations, interference with official acts, failure to obey a traffic control device, reckless driving, failure to provide security against liability, speeding more than 20 mph in a 55 mph or less zone, failure to maintain control, eluding and a one-way streets violation.

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The first count of harboring a runaway child was filed last year after a 17-year-old girl, whose father had reported her as a runaway in October, was found in November in Holt’s residence in Cedar Rapids, according to a criminal complaint.

Holt was arrested and charged in December and was released on his own recognizance. He submitted a plea of not guilty in January. On Feb. 7, he failed to appear for a case management conference and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

On Tuesday, Cedar Rapids police had been informed that the runaway was still with him. Officers spotted him driving a car at 33rd Avenue and Edgewood Road SW with a female passenger and attempted to pull him over because of the arrest warrant, according to the criminal complaint.

Holt led police on a chase out of Cedar Rapids, through North Liberty and into Coralville where he lost control of his car and crashed into a ditch along I-80. He resisted arrest by head-butting one of the officers twice in the face, but was taken into custody. The passenger in his car turned out to be a different 17-year-old girl, who had also been reported as a runaway by her mother, the complaint states.

The complaint for the first harboring a runaway charge listed Holt’s address in Cedar Rapids, but the complaint for Tuesday’s charges listed an address in Iowa City.

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