By Shereen Siewert
A 25-year-old Wausau area man is facing an array of charges after allegedly fleeing from police with more than 1,100 doses of methamphetamine, a gun, ammunition and thousands in cash in his vehicle.
Police say Trenton L. McCorkle, of Weston, was already on a $10,000 bond when police tried to pull him over on Dec. 14 in Rothschild. Officers say McCorkle was driving recklessly, weaving in and out of traffic and around vehicles on Bus. Hwy. 51 at a high rate of speed and refused to stop until he struck a light pole on West Grand Avenue near Park Street.
According to court documents, witness told police he saw a woman toss a black bag out of McCorkle’s vehicle during the pursuit, an observation later corroborated by McCorkle’s passenger, who has not been charged. The passenger told police she feared for her life during the chase and threw the bag at McCorkle’s direction, “just making sure she didn’t die.”
The bag, retrieved by police, contained more than 220 grams of methamphetamine, $4,627 in cash and a Springfield tactical handgun, court documents show. Ammunition was also allegedly recovered from McCorkle.
Court records show McCorkle had three open felony cases, all filed in Lincoln County Circuit Court, at the time of his arrest. Two of the three involve drugs and weapons charges. McCorkle is a convicted felon and is prohibited from possessing firearms. Police suspect McCorkle of selling “pounds” of methamphetamine in the Wausau area, according to an incident report filed with the court.
Now, he’s facing charges of fleeing an officer, possession of more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and possessing drug paraphernalia. The case was filed Dec. 21 in Marathon County Circuit Court, after which McCorkle was ordered held on a $250,000 cash bond. He remains behind bars as of Jan. 17.
A preliminary hearing is set for March 25.
