Chester kidnap suspect on bond for previous York chase caught after 115 MPH pursuit
A suspect free on bail from a previous police pursuit was arrested Tuesday after a police chase in York and Chester counties that reached speeds of 115 miles per hour, officials said.
James Duston Varnadore, 37, was captured before dawn in Chester County after the chase on Interstate 77 in York and Chester counties, said Grant Suskin, spokesman for the Chester County Sheriff’s Office.
Varnadore, of Edgemoor, had outstanding warrants charging him with kidnapping and domestic violence from earlier in April, according to documents obtained by The Herald. Varnadore is accused of holding a woman against her will for hours; he’s also charged with breaking her nose and causing other injuries on April 2, according to arrest warrants obtained by The Herald.
Deputies tried to arrest Varnadore in Chester County Tuesday morning before he fled on U.S. 21 into York County with deputies in pursuit, according to incident reports from sheriff’s offices in York and Chester counties. Varnadore drove to Rock Hill then turned back south on I-77 and went back into Chester County, driving as fast as 115 mph, deputies said.
Varnadore got off I-77 at Exit 65 in Richburg where he drove his vehicle into a ditch and then fled on foot, deputies said. He was captured after a short foot chase, reports show.
No members of the public were hurt, Suskin said.
Varnadore is charged from the chase with failure to stop for a blue light and possession of methamphetamine, after meth was found and seized, according to incident reports and jail records.
At the Chester jail, he was served arrest warrants in connection with the April 2 kidnapping and domestic violence, deputies said.
Free on bail from 2019 chase
Varnadore was free on bail pending trial from a 2019 chase in York County that reached speeds of 90 MPH, records show. He also was on bond from Chester County in connection with a June 2020 arrest charging him with receiving stolen goods, court records show.
Varnadore remains in the Chester County jail.
This story was originally published April 20, 2021 at 12:31 PM.
