KIAMESHA LAKE, NY — On Tuesday, February 28, at approximately 11:00 p.m. deputies from the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office stopped a 2013 Nissan Altima for a loud exhaust in the vicinity of the old Leisure Time water company on RT-42 in Kiamesha Lake. Upon approaching the vehicle, the deputies noticed a handgun on the front passenger seat. The driver, identified as Antoine Smith, 34 of Monticello hit the gas and took off.

The deputies initiated a pursuit with state police assisting. The driver ran off the road a short time later in the Patio Homes development and exited the vehicle with the gun in his hand. He was apprehended after a short foot chase. Deputies, with the assistance of an Environmental Conservation Police K-9 Officer, recovered a .45 caliber semi-auto pistol that the defendant had tossed in the snow.

Antoine Smith, who has four prior felony convictions, was charged with the felonies of possession of a loaded handgun, reckless endangerment first degree, and the misdemeanors of resisting arrest, fleeing a police officer, and criminal impersonation. In addition, Smith was issued numerous vehicle and traffic citations. The defendant was arraigned before Town of Thompson Judge Sharon Jankiewicz and committed to the Sullivan County Jail without bail. The defendant is scheduled to appear in Town of Thompson court on Monday, March 6, at 5:00 p.m.

The sheriff’s office was assisted by the State Police, Fallsburg Police, Monticello Fire Department, and Upper Delaware Ambulance.