Driver who fled traffic stop found in Dumpster

A Pontiac man who is charged with fleeing from a Royal Oak police traffic stop was finally found outside a Madison Heights motel in a Dumpster. Elijah O. Lomax, 36, is charged with second-degree fleeing and eluding, a 10-year felony, and driving on a suspended license, a misdemeanor. Police said they spotted Lomax speeding near I-75 and 11 Mile Road about 2:30 a.m. Jan. 30. He pulled over when police said they first stopped him on the side of the freeway near 13 Mile Road, then fled at a high speed when the officer approached the suspect’s vehicle. Lomax drove on and exited the freeway at 14 Mile Road and turned down Barrington Street in Madison Heights, police said.

Police found the suspect’s car but could not locate him at first. They set up a perimeter and checked the area.

“When an officer checked with the clerk of a Motel 6 he was told a woman who was a guest said she heard something in the Dumpster,” said Royal Oak police Lt. Albert Carter.

Police said they looked and found the Lomax inside the large trash container.

“He said he fled because he had warrants out for his arrest and didn’t want to go to jail,” Carter said.

Lomax had outstanding warrants for cocaine possession in Pontiac’s 50th District Court, and for failing to appear in Royal Oak 44th District Court for a third-time drunken driving felony charge in 2018.

The Royal Oak detective who handled the drunken driving charge is the same one now overseeing Lomax’s fleeing case. Lomax is jailed on $5,000 cash bond. His criminal history includes convictions for armed robbery, third-degree fleeing and eluding, and a few misdemeanors. Lomax is scheduled to appear for his next hearing in Royal District Court at 9 a.m. Wednesday.