EASTCHESTER - A New Rochelle man who portrays a steroids dealer in the move "The Wrestler" was arrested tonight after a dramatic chase involving federal and local authorities.
"Art imitates life," federal Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman Erin Mulvey said tonight.
The manhunt, which involved police cars being rammed and guns drawn, ended on Highland Avenue, where the hulking Scott Siegel of 25 Nautilus Place was captured.
Police released only some of the details tonight, citing the ongoing investigation, the many jurisdictions involved and twists and turns the chase took that officials were trying to sort out.
"It was a very hairy situation," Eastchester Police Chief Timothy Bonci said.
It began about 5:30 p.m. when members of the DEA based in Westchester County contacted local police to tell them that a suspect in a vehicle the task force had attempted to stop in Eastchester had fled, officials said. Siegel, who appeared in last year's "The Wrestler," starring Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei, was wanted for distributing steroids,Mulvey said.
Apparently the task force had tried to stop the vehicle, described as a black Cadillac Escalade sport utility vehicle in a couple of other locations, including Bronxville, but the man, eluded capture by ramming a couple of police vehicles, Bonci said.
During the chase, there were reports of shots fired, which may have come from officers trying to stop the SUV, but police were still investigating the circumstances, Bonci said. The vehicle was eventually recovered parked on the side of Winslow Circle, a quiet cul-de-sac in Tuckahoe, but the suspect was gone, Bonci said. Police later spotted him inside another vehicle, and were led on a foot chase that ended at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Main Street.
Simon Ritche, 40, of Mount Vernon, was standing outside of a nearby bar smoking a cigarette when he heard the commotion.
"All of a sudden I hear people screaming, and next thing I know, 15 seconds later, I see this kid running," Ritche said of Siegel.
Officers, with guns in hand, soon chased him down.
"This guy with his gun drawn was saying, 'Police! Stop! Stop! Stop!'" Ritche said. "The kid - he ran like a deer."
Mulvey said Siegel was arrested and charged with distributing steroids and assaulting a federal officer, both felonies. He was taken into federal custody and will be arraigned tomorrow.
