VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WVEC) -- Police said a man from New York who led officers on a chase from Cheriton to Hampton on Friday faces several charges and that others are pending.
Police arrested 45-year-old Patrick Nilo Gil who appeared in court Monday and was denied bond. This wasn't his first run-in with the law.
Officers said police on the Eastern Shore initially tried to stop Gil for speeding on February 23.
Northampton County Sheriff David Doughty, Jr. told 13News Now that Gil was going 87 miles per hour in Cheriton when members of the police department tried to pull Gil over. Cheriton police contacted Doughty's office when Gil did not stop. Attempts to bring his SUV to a halt with spike strips failed.
Officers and deputies followed Gil, who reached speeds of more than 100 miles per hour, onto the Chesapeake Bay-Bridge Tunnel (CBBT) before breaking off their pursuit.
CBBT police made attempts to stop Gil before he reached Virginia Beach streets. Officers said he headed into Norfolk and onto Interstate 64. A spike strip put down at the mouth of the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel eventually brought him to rest in the westbound tube of the HRBT.
The current charges against Gil are Reckless Driving, Eluding Police, and Felonious Assault (2 counts).
He may face more charges in Virginia Beach as well as other jurisdictions.
The 45-year-old said he is from New York City, but he was visiting his aunt in Williamsburg when his SUV was towed. He said after paying $350 to get it out of the impound, later that day is when police tried to pull him over. He said he was fed up and didn’t want to deal with more aggravation so he tried to outrun them.
"I wanted to stop, but once I started to chase I thought I'm already in trouble I might as well try and find a way to get away from these people,” said Gil. “I should have stopped, I should have stopped, I just finished paying 350 dollars to get it out.”
Police on the Eastern Shore attempted to pull his SUV over for speeding and reckless driving, according to Virginia Beach Police. Gil lead them on a high-speed chase that wound up on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, where Gil was caught on V-DOT cameras swerving in and out of traffic, nearly missing collisions with other cars.
"I didn't mean no harm, I didn't mean no harm, I didn't want to hurt nobody, I didn't want to hit nobody,” said Gil.
Police strategically placed some spike strips at the entrance of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. Gill ran over those strips, popping his tires and crashing inside the tunnel where he was arrested.
"The car stopped, they broke all the windows, I put my hands up, that's it, I had no choice but to give up,” said Gil.
Records from the New York State Department of Corrections reveal Gil’s criminal history. Police said Gil lives in New York. Now, and he has spent time in prison there.
According to the New York State D.O.C., Gil served time at the Auburn Correctional Facility in upstate New York from October of 1998 to April of 2003. Auburn is a maximum security prison.
Gil was sentenced to serve time there when he was convicted in Queens court for burglary.
According to criminal records, Gil didn't last too long as a free man. He went back to prison about three years later.
Department of Corrections inmate history shows Gil was sent to New York's infamous Sing Sing Prison in 2006. He was sentenced to serve time at that maximum security facility for a robbery charge and wasn't released until 2012.
13News Now also found Gil's Facebook profile. In a December post, Gil wrote he hopes someone will help him get his conviction overturned. He mentioned a stipulation in New York law, which allows a court to vacate a conviction.
This request was made before this recent police pursuit incident.