Chester man faces litany of charges after allegedly abducting two people, attacking police
CHESTER — A Chester man faces a total of 20 criminal charges after he abducted two people and then charged police officers as he wore body armor early Sunday morning at a residence on Centralia Road.
Chesterfield Police said Christopher A. Courteau, 29, has been charged with two counts of abduction, two counts of attempted capital murder, three counts of brandishing, three counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, five counts of assault on a law enforcement officer, shooting into an occupied dwelling, malicious wounding, unlawful wounding, attempt to disarm a law enforcement officer, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, use of body armor while committing a crime, and felony obstruction of justice. He now is being held without bond at the Chesterfield County Jail.
The incident started around 3:30 a.m. Sunday at a house in the 4500 block of Centralia Road near its intersection with Chester Road. Police allege that Courteau, who lived in the house with another man, assaulted the man and the man's girlfriend, and then held them against their will at the residence.
The woman escaped the house and called police. When officers arrived, Courteau reportedly ran upstairs, put on some body armor and grabbed a revolver. He obeyed the officers' command to put down the weapon, according to the police report, but then he is alleged to have charged one of the officers. Following a brief struggle in which several officers were injured, the suspect was subdued and handcuffed.
None of the officers' or victims' injuries were considered life-threatening.
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A motive for the incident was not immediately reported. A police spokesperson said the investigation is continuing.
Anyone who may have information about this case is asked to contact Chesterfield Police at (804) 748-1251 or Crime Solvers at (804) 748-0660. Information may also be shared through the P3Tips mobile app.
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Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist and daily news coach for USA TODAY Network's Atlantic Region which includes Virginia. He is based in Petersburg, Virginia. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Chester man faces 22 charges after abduction, scuffle with officers
