Motorist faces felony after leading Highway Patrol trooper on high-speed chase

An 18-year-old is facing a felony charge after allegedly leading Montana Highway Patrol troopers on a high-speed chase south and west of Kalispell last month.  

Prosecutors brought Eljas Paul Koistinen up on one count of aggravated fleeing from or eluding a peace officer in Flathead County District Court following the Oct. 15 chase. He pleaded not guilty at his Oct. 23 arraignment before Judge Heidi Ulbricht.  

The chase began when a trooper patrolling the U.S. 93 Bypass spotted a car speeding southbound at 111 mph, according to court documents. Hitting his emergency lights, the trooper began tailing the driver — later identified as Koistinen — and saw him allegedly pass another vehicle in the merge zone of a roundabout, nearly causing a crash. 

Though the trooper flipped his siren on, Koistinen continued to speed through the roundabout and shot out onto Montana 503, court documents said. From there, Koistinen zipped around blind corners, forcing oncoming vehicles to hug the fog line to avoid a collision, court documents alleged.  

The trooper later reported hitting corners at speeds of 90 mph without being able to close the distance with Koistinen. 

The chase came to an end when Koistinen allegedly tried to pull onto a sideroad in an unsuccessful attempt to shake the trooper. After he pulled over, Koistinen was arrested and booked into the county jail.  

An omnibus hearing in Koistinen's case is set for Nov. 19 with a pretrial conference to follow on Jan. 9.  

If convicted of the felony, he faces up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. 

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.