Charges filed after high-speed chase ends in dramatic arrest

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Charges have been filed after a police chase on Chicago's West Side turned into a massive manhunt for a suspect on the run. The chase reached speeds up to 70 mph on residential streets before officers made an arrest.

PHOTOS: Suspect arrested after high speed chase

The chase began around 5:15 p.m. Tuesday when officers observed the "person of interest" in an Aug. 26 homicide near West End and LaPorte. The chase ended several miles away, near West End and Central Avenue, when the suspect hit another car, fled the vehicle and ran into an apartment building on foot.

"He stopped the car, he hopped out, he started running down the alley and the police started chasing him. That's all I saw," said Tony McKinney, a witness.

Chopper 7 HD hovered over the scene as officers surrounded the building in the 200-block of N. Central. They knocked down doors in the apartment building looking for the man.

Police said they finally found him in the first floor unit.

Desmond Henry, 25, of the 100-block of N. Laporte Ave., is charged with four counts of unlawful possession of a weapon, one count each of fleeing police, possession of a controlled substance, cannabis possession, two counts of vehicular assault of a peace officer, and numerous traffic citations.

Felisia Sanders, who lives across the hall, said she was grateful she was away at the time.

"When I got home, I found my door, my front door, on the floor. Ripped off the hinges," Sanders said.

Police said they recovered a firearm from the man's vehicle.

Chicago police have a policy that prohibits high-speed chases. A department spokesperson said that part of the incident is under investigation.