(Harlan, IA) – A man from Mills County was arrested Friday night following a pursuit that began in Shelby County and ended with a crash in Pottawattamie County. The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office reports a traffic stop on a speeding vehicle was attempted at around 9:30-p.m, Friday on Highway 59 in Shelby County near County Road F-32. Authorities say the vehicle was traveling in excess of 80-mph in a 55-mph zone. Instead of stopping, the driver, later identified as 34-year-old Nicholas James Gragg, of Malvern, began to elude law enforcement.

Nicholas Gragg (Shelby County S/O photo)

Gragg’s vehicle fled south on Highway 59 through Avoca, Hancock and Oakland, until turning west onto Highway 6 into Council Bluffs. During the pursuit, two Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputies performed PIT (Precision Immobilization Technique) maneuvers in an attempt to end the chase. Gragg ultimately crashed his vehicle and the 4.9-mile marker of the Interstate 29/I-80 Expressway. Once his vehicle came to a stop, Gragg fled on foot and was apprehended immediately.

In addition to multiple citations, Nicholas Gragg was charged with the following:

• Possession of a Controlled Substance- 2nd offense
• Prohibited Acts
• Poss. of Drug Paraphernalia
• Reckless Driving
• Eluding (A Class-D Felony).

Agencies assisting the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office during the incident, included the following: Pott. County Sheriff’s Office; Iowa State Patrol; Council Bluffs P-D, and the Council Bluffs Fire Department.