York County man arrested after high-speed motorcycle chase in Perry County

PERRY COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) – A York County man was arrested after allegedly stealing a motorcycle and attempting to flee from state police in Perry County.

According to a criminal complaint filed by Pennsylvania State Police Newport, Perry County Police were dispatched to Landisburg Road on July 20, 2024 at 5:14 p.m. for a report of a stolen motorcycle. The complaint states the victim told police he parked his red 2005 Honda Shadow in his yard next to his home and charged the battery from noon to 4 p.m. while he was out of his home.

When the victim returned home, the motorcycle was missing. After the victim provided the license plate and chassis number, the police began investigating the incident.

According to another affidavit, at 7:58 p.m. that same day, state police in Perry County witnessed a red 2005 Honda Shadow pass them and head down Mountain Road.

According to the affidavit, officers pursued the vehicle and attempted to initiate a traffic stop on Mountain Road, but the vehicle failed to stop and ran a stop sign on Delville Road. The complaint states the vehicle continued to travel at a “high rate of speed” and “in an unsafe and erratic manner” until it eventually stopped in Duncannon Borough after “colliding into a rock wall at a low rate of speed.”

The driver, identified as 22-year-old Jacob Barnhart, was immediately taken into custody.

The criminal complaint states that Barnhart admitted in a subsequent interrogation to taking the motorcycle from the victim’s property.

Barnhart faces numerous charges, including theft by unauthorized taking, attempted escape, resisting prosecution, and numerous traffic violations.

Bail was set at $45,000, but Barnhart failed to post it. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 29 at 10:30 a.m. and he is currently being held at the Perry County Prison.