A Shillington man with a history of leading law enforcement on high-speed chases has been charged in a December incident in which police said he fled an officer by going more than 100 mph on the Warren Street Bypass.
Edwin Lopez, 22, of the 100 block of Washington Street was committed to Berks County Jail in lieu of $15,000 bail to await a hearing following arraignment Tuesday night before District Judge Carissa L. Johnson in Reading Central Court.
Lopez faces charges of fleeing or attempting to elude an officer, driving under a suspended license, reckless driving and driving without lights to avoid identification or arrest.
According to court records:
On Dec. 10, just before midnight, Muhlenberg Township police Officer Connor Ahnert was eastbound on Route 12, which is the Warren Street Bypass, when he saw a Jeep Grand Cherokee pass his patrol vehicle.
He checked the registration and found it had expired in October. He initiated a traffic stop as the Jeep exited the bypass onto the ramp for North Fifth Street Highway. The SUV briefly stopped on North Fifth heading north before pulling away and getting on the ramp for westbound Route 12.
Ahnert told police dispatchers that he was in pursuit of the SUV, which reached speeds in excess of 100 mph through the area of the Schuylkill Avenue access ramps. The speed limit in that section is 45 mph.
The SUV’s lights went dark as it proceeded toward the merge with Route 222 in the area of the Berkshire Mall. Ahnert was instructed by his supervisor to terminate the pursuit.
When he last saw the Jeep, it was southbound on Route 222 past the area of Berkshire Mall, still with no lights.
After giving up the chase, Ahnert went to the Shillington home of the registered driver. The woman said the only person who could be driving the car was her son, Edwin Lopez.
He wasn’t home, and neither were the ignition keys, his mother said.
The officer gave her his business card and asked her to tell her son to call him.
He never called.
As December and 2025 wound down, Ahnert filed the charges.
In the probable cause, he concluded there was reasonable cause to believe Edwin Lopez was the driver of the SUV during the pursuit based on his access to the vehicle and the keys; absence from his residence at the time of the incident; failure to contact police afterward; and prior conviction for the same offense.
In 2024, according to court records, Lopez was given two years of probation after pleading guilty to fleeing or attempting to elude an officer.
Information on how Lopez was taken into custody was unavailable.