MALTA, NY — The Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office conducted a vehicle stop for erratic operation Tuesday at 10:04 p.m. on East High Street.
Investigation into the stop led to the arrest of Bradley W. Crannell, 52, of Malta.
Crannell was charged with DWI, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the 1st degree, unlawful fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, speeding, improper plates, uninspected motor vehicle, uninsured motor vehicle, failing to keep right and passed red light.
After initially stopping, Crannell allegedly fled the scene in his vehicle resulting in a pursuit that ended when he abandoned it at the old Spa Brahuas on East High Street and ran into the woods.
The Sheriff’s Unmanned Aerial Surveillance Unit was deployed and used a thermal camera to successfully locate Crannell lying next to a creek.
He was taken into custody shortly thereafter without incident.
Crannell is accused of operating a motor vehicle while in an intoxicated condition and at a time when his driver’s license was revoked due to a previous DWI conviction.
The DWI charge was elevated to a felony as a result of a previous DWI conviction within the preceding 10 years.
He allegedly refused the chemical test.
Crannell was arraigned before the Honorable Ellwood A. Sloat Jr. in the Malta Town Court and remanded to the Saratoga County Jail pending further proceedings in that court.
