Man arrested after chase and manhunt in Monmouth

A Lewiston man was arrested Thursday after fleeing on foot following a high-speed chase and hours-long manhunt, eventually tracked down by police using two police dogs, a drone with thermal imaging detection and a game camera that took a photo of him. lots of tips from locals reporting their runs and trips.

Nicholas Derosby, 28, formerly of Waterville, was eventually found hiding under leaves next to a pond on North Main Street in North Monmouth. Tex Technology Industries. Police found Derosby there after being tipped off by area residents.

police used Monmouth Police Facebook page To post a photo of the suspect caught on a resident’s game camera, citizens responded by calling in sightings of him passing through their yards in different parts of town.

Police warned the public out of concern that Derosby might try to break into houses in the area or steal a car.

“I posted something on Facebook and we started getting calls, people around the area saw it, so we just kept following it,” said Monmouth Lt. Dana Wessling. “We were everywhere. We were really concerned and the citizens did a really great job; “That helped us tie it into one space.”

Wessling said a few days ago a Winthrop officer saw a car making bad passes and driving erratically, but when the officer turned to follow it, the car sped off. Police ran the license plate and found that the car’s registration had expired. They said the owner listed was not the person driving the car that day, but they suspected it might have been the owner’s son, Derosby.

Around 11 a.m. Thursday, police received reports that the same car was driving from Winthrop toward Monmouth on U.S. Route 202, again making poor passes and speeding. A Winthrop officer attempted to catch up with the vehicle, and Wessling came across the vehicle on U.S. Route 202 and turned back to follow it.

“I turned around and it took off at high speed, shooting out like a rocket over 202 passing cars, going into the breakdown lane…” Wessling said.

Speeds approached 181 mph and the car turned onto Back Alley, a side road traveling at an estimated 90 mph. Wessling said he slowed down to give some distance between his cruiser and the car, but he still followed its path. He said the car went airborne over a hill in the road on Old Lewiston Road, which appeared to damage the vehicle and allowed Wessling to catch up to it. The driver exited the vehicle and fled on foot through a field and in front of a house.

Police said a female passenger who was with Derosby was taken into custody but later released without being charged.

Police believed the driver was Derosby, who was on probation and had a revoked license, Wessling said.

The man remained at large for several hours, although police tracked down dogs from the Androscoggin and Kennebec County Sheriff’s Offices who assisted in the search. Police also used a drone that showed thermal images and showed where a person might be on the ground below.

Derosby was arrested Thursday evening on charges of fleeing an officer, endangering driving, violating conditions of release, refusing to be arrested or detained, operating after revocation and operating a vehicle with a suspended license.

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