Man Crashes into Game Commission Vehicle

A Bradford County man was in jail Wednesday afternoon on charges he sped away from, then slammed into a Pennsylvania Game Commission vehicle, injuring two wildlife conservation officers and himself, the Game Commission reported.

Timothy James Mott, 34, of Columbia Cross Roads, is charged with four felony counts of aggravated assault, a misdemeanor count of fleeing or attempting to elude police officers, three summary counts of possessing loaded firearms in a vehicle, a summary count of unlawful use of lights, and numerous traffic violations following a crash early in the morning on Nov. 2.

Mott on Wednesday remained in Bradford County Prison, unable to post the $200,000 bail that had been set by a judge, court records indicate.

At about 2:30 a.m. on Nov. 2, a state police aircraft alerted Pennsylvania Game Commission officers of an individual spotlighting from a vehicle along Sawyer Road in Springfield Township. Recreational spotlighting in Pennsylvania is unlawful between the hours of 11 p.m. and sunrise.

Bradford County Wildlife Conservation Officer Jeffery Oleniacz, along with Deputy Wildlife Conservation Officer John DeMille, responded to the call and pulled up behind the vehicle. But the suspect vehicle drove away at a high rate of speed after the officers activated their vehicle’s lights and siren.

Oleniacz, who was driving, followed the vehicle to Burt and Thompson Hill roads before disengaging due to concern for the officers and public safety.

A short time later, after Oleniacz moved his vehicle to a stationary position along Checkerville Road, Mott’s vehicle approached.

Oleniacz again activated his vehicle’s lights and siren, but the approaching vehicle struck the front driver side of the officers’ vehicle, causing it to spin and come to rest on the road. The striking vehicle continued off the road and came to rest.

Oleniacz placed Mott under arrest and state troopers responded to the scene to conduct the investigation.

Mott was transported by ambulance to Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, where he was treated and released. Oleniacz also was transported by ambulance to Robert Packer Hospital, where he was treated and released and Deputy WCO DeMille was treated at the hospital for minor injuries.

Three loaded rifles and a spotlight were found inside the vehicle driven by Mott, the Game Commission said.

Mott’s preliminary hearing on charges is scheduled for Nov. 13.

“Our Wildlife Conservation Officers work all hours to curtail poaching activities and protect Pennsylvania’s wildlife resources,” said Mark Rutkowski, the Game Commission’s law-enforcement supervisor for the Northeast Region. “The dangers inherent in the position of a WCO are brought to light during encounters such as this.”

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