Vermilion fugitive arrested

BROWNHELM TWP. — An armed man who evaded capture by Vermilion police earlier this month was found and taken into custody today, days after authorizes allegedly found a fully automatic assault rifle in the man's home. Members of the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested James E. Thompson, 39, of Liberty Avenue, early Wednesday afternoon in the Mill Hollow park area in Brownhelm Township, Vermilion police Chief Chris Hartung said. Thompson faces these charges: •Having weapons under disability, a third-degree felony •Unlawful possession of a dangerous ordinance, a fifth-degree felony •Illegal manufacture or possession of explosives, a fifth-degree felony •Failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer, a third-degree felony •Reckless operation of a vehicle, a first-degree misdemeanor •Fictitious license plates, a minor misdemeanor •Driving under suspension, a first-degree misdemeanor Thompson was also served with a misdemeanor child support warrant. That warrant is what kicked off a traffic stop involving Thompson at Grand Street and Liberty Avenue on May 9. During the stop, Thompson can be heard on body camera video telling a Vermilion police officer he was a "sovereign citizen" and that Jesus Christ told him he didn't need a driver's license. When the police officer asked Thompson to shut off his car, video shows him drive off before eventually running off the road near a golf course and fleeing from officers on foot. While pursuing Thompson through the golf course, police said he appeared to be holding something resembling a weapon, according to a police report. Later, when officers got a warrant to search Thompson's vehicle, they found no firearms but located pistol ammunition, knives and a bulletproof vest, the report states. They also found magazines for an AK-47 assault rifle. Authorities then got a search warrant for Thompson's residence, and went there on May 11, Hartung said. Inside, they allegedly found an AK-47 assault rifle. It's a semi-automatic weapon but was modified for fully automatic firing, which is illegal, Hartung said. The illegally modified AK-47 is the cause for Thompson's illegal manufacture or possession of explosives charge. No explosives were found in his possession, but Ohio law groups the illegal weapon into that same criminal code section, Hartung said. When agents of the violent fugitive task force found Thompson alone in a parked vehicle at Mill Hollow on Wednesday, he did not resist arrest, Hartung said. "I'm relieved he's in custody and safely tucked away in the Erie County Jail," Hartung said. "We want to thank the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force for their tireless efforts in apprehending him." Thompson is being held in the Erie County Jail without bond as of Wednesday night.