Elgin man crashes in front of Santa’s Village after fleeing sheriff’s deputy

A northwest suburban man is facing several charges after he crashed his car into a Santa’s Village Wednesday afternoon while trying to flee from police in the northwest suburbs.

Elijah Pittman, 28, is charged with aggravated fleeing of a police officer, possession of a controlled substance, resisting or obstructing a police officer, driving under the influence of drugs, and driving on a suspended license, according to a statement from the Kane County sheriff’s office.

A deputy was watching traffic in a construction zone on Route 25 north of I-90 in East Dundee when he saw the driver of a Silver Pontiac heading north on Route 25 while talking on his cellphone, according to police.

The officer tried to pull over the vehicle and it initially pulled into the parking lot of the Milk Pail restaurant. The vehicle started to stop, then sped up before the driver threw something out of the vehicle and pulled back onto Route 25, police said.

The deputy started chasing the vehicle, but as it sped up he terminated the pursuit, police said.

The vehicle was speeding over 85 mph and it was obvious the driver was not going to stop, police said. The deputy lost sight of the vehicle.

He headed north on Route 25 toward Route 72 and saw the driver running on the east side of the road, and the vehicle crashed in front of a Santa’s Village. The car had rolled over and caught fire.

The deputy checked to make sure no one was in the car, then began searching for the suspect. Several citizens pointed out Pittman and the deputy took him into custody. He was treated for injuries at the scene.

Authorities searched the Milk Pail parking lot and found about 5 grams of a substance that tested positive for heroin, police said.

In addition to the charges, Pittman, of the 0-100 block of South Crystal Avenue in Elgin, was issued several traffic citations. He was also wanted on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear on an assault charge.