A Guatemalan national was charged Monday after leading law enforcement on a chase in the Roanoke Rapids city limits because he thought United States immigration officers were after him, according to the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office.

Nery Wilmer Bamaca-Castanon, 21, of Emporia, was found to be an undocumented immigrant following the chase, Captain Andy Cash said, and as of this report, was still being held in the Halifax County Detention Center without the opportunity for bond under the Criminal Illegal Alien Enforcement Act, which requires local law enforcement to detain undocumented individuals for up to 48 hours if a federal immigration detainer has been issued.

The chase began after Chief Deputy N. Aycock was in the area of the Blue Flame Car Wash on Tenth Street in Roanoke Rapids and observed a white Toyota Corolla with Virginia registration traveling eastbound.

Cash said Aycock noticed a small child standing in the back seat of the vehicle who was not secured in a child safety seat. The male child was between the ages of 12 and 13 months.

Aycock initiated a traffic stop in the AAA parking lot on Tenth Street to address the child restraint violation.

As the deputy approached the vehicle, Bamaca-Castanon fled the scene at a high rate of speed.

A vehicle pursuit ensued through multiple intersections across Roanoke Rapids, during which the man failed to stop for several red lights and reached speeds of up to 65 mph in a 35 mph zone. Additional units from the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office and the Roanoke Rapids Police Department responded to assist.

Bamaca-Castanon was taken into custody on Fourth Avenue near Chockoyotte Street without further trouble, and the child was released to his father, a passenger in the vehicle, at the scene. Despite not having an operator’s license, Bamaca-Castanon gave rides to people needing transportation, Cash said.

Bamaca-Castanon faces charges of felony fleeing to elude arrest, driving without an operator’s license, speeding 65 in a 35 mph zone, failure to stop at red lights, and a child restraint violation.

He has a December 5 district court date pending any action by federal immigration authorities.

As of this report, there was no entry for him in federal court records.