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Motorcyclist who led police on chase faces many charges

A Shippensburg man who led police on a high-speed motorcycle chase through Carbon and Schuylkill counties Tuesday faces a lengthy list of charges.

Robert James Moore Jr., 18, of 267 High Mountain Rd., was charged with fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer; recklessly endangering another person, reckless driving, careless driving, failing to yield to stop signs and yield signs, exceeding maximum speed limits, failing to drive at a safe speed, failing to have insurance and failing to have a motorcycle license.According to an affidavit of probable cause filed with District Judge Casimir Kosciolek of Lansford by Nesquehoning police officer Carl Breiner, here's what happened:Breiner received a call from Rush Township police at 6:25 a.m. that two motorcycles had just fled police and were heading east on Route 54 toward Nesquehoning at a high rate of speed. The motorcycles were dark, and one appeared to be blue.Breiner arrived on Route 54 minutes later and saw two sport/racing motorcycles, one black and one blue, traveling east. Breiner turned around and began closing distance. The cyclists turned on to Catawissa Street, traveling east. Breiner turned on his emergency lights to get around a pickup truck that was between him and the cycles. The cycles immediately began to speed away, passing in a 25-mph no-passing zone. Breiner activated his siren and attempted to stay with them, As they approached the Mermon Avenue intersection, the cycles passed several cars that were backed up in the morning traffic at the stop sign. Both cycles came dangerously close to striking some of these vehicles as they passed between legally parked vehicles and the occupied ones waiting to go through the stop sign.Both bikes proceeded through the stop sign at a high rate of speed and without stopping.Both cycles now passed multiple vehicles with oncoming traffic approaching in a 25 mph no-passing zone. Both were traveling in excess of 70 mph during this time. Breiner attempted to keep them in sight despite the vehicles being faster than his.Breiner wrote in the affidavit that he reached speeds of 115 mph while traveling north on Route 209 once out of town.After going through the turns in the section of Route 209 between Nesquehoning and Jim Thorpe, Breiner came upon a straightaway leading to the borough line and saw both bikes again passing cars while oncoming traffic was coming south and getting dangerously close.The cyclists then went into the borough of Jim Thorpe, with Breiner following; both bikes continued passing cars through the turns in the area of Carbon County Friends of Animals.Upon reaching the Route 903 bridge, the black cycle turned directly in front of an oncoming vehicle that had the green light, while the blue cycle went around and almost missed the left turn to go north on Route 903.At this time, Officer Mike Bokeko of the Jim Thorpe Police Department pulled his cruiser partially across the northbound lane past the bridge. Bokeko had his lights activated as the cycles approached and squeezed between his vehicle and the sidewalk, almost striking Bokeko's cruiser. The cycles again reached very high rates of speed while going north on Route 903 through Jim Thorpe, going up the Kattner's Mountain section of the roadway.Approximately halfway up Kattner's Mountain, Breiner reduced his speed to a normal rate and advised Bokeko and a Franklin Township officer of the same, due to the heavy volume of work traffic. Breiner advised Kidder Township police to try to stop the cycles if they saw them.At the top of Kattner's Mountain, Breiner and Bokeko pulled over and waited to see if Kidder officers had spotted the cycles. Minutes later, the Kidder officer told Breiner and Bokeko that the cyclists had spotted him and and fled. The Kidder Township officer said he would check the area to see if either had crashed due to the turns in the roadway. He checked Route 534, and found that one of the cyclists had just wrecked inside state police jurisdiction. Breiner arrived at the scene, identified the operator as Moore and obtained a confession from him in reference to the incident.Moore was operating the blue 2004 Yamaha R6 cycle, one of the two that had fled Breiner.Moore was arraigned and jailed in Carbon County Prison under $40,000 bail.