A 19-year-old man is sitting in Anderson County jail this morning on multiple charges after fleeing from a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper, Clinton police and Anderson County deputies last night.

THP reports a trooper noticed the license plate on a vehicle stopped at a traffic light on Highway 61 at Frank L. Diggs Drive was obscured. A search revealed the vehicle to be stolen, so the trooper followed Jared Scott Martin until another backup arrived.

When the trooper attempted to initiate a traffic stop, Martin didn’t stop. He cut across the road and down a grass embankment. When the trooper followed, Martin nearly struck several other patrol cars and continued onto Highway 61.

While trying to turn around through a median, Martin was blocked by other patrol vehicles, so he made a U-turn. While traveling back on 61 toward Miller Road, troopers said, the car’s engine blew; it slowed down and then stopped.

THP says when troopers approached, Martin tried to put the car in reverse and strike officers behind him. Martin was removed from the car and arrested.

The arrest report states Martin “stated that he had been trying to ‘eat numerous bags’ of narcotics while attempting to flee from law enforcement.”

Martin faces charges including DUI, resisting arrest, destruction of evidence, theft of a motor vehicle, reckless driving, aggravated assault, evading arrest, failure to exercise due care, improper passing, no driver’s license, speeding and failure to signal.