A Houston man faces three felony charges after allegedly scuffling June 3 with a pair of police officers.
The Houston Police Department said Corey A. Tharp, 36, of 115 S. Oak Crest Drive, is charged with assault, resisting arrest and attempted escape from custody. He is held on $400,000 bond in the Texas County Jail.
According to a probable cause statement, a Houston police officer responded around 9 p.m. to a 911 call at Tharp’s residence.
A woman there said Tharp was angry she has been talking to her former boyfriend. The officer, who said he knew Tharp, left the area to search for him and located him behind a dumpster in the Hardee’s parking lot.
The officer said due to previous encounters with Tharp, he drew his duty weapon and advised Tharp to come out and get on the ground. The officer said Tharp did not comply and instead came toward him in a threatening manner.
The officer wrestled Tharp to the ground, but he resisted being handcuffed. Another officer arrived, and Tharp continued to resist the officers’ attempts to handcuff him. At that point, the first officer said he deployed a taser in Tharp’s back.
Tharp briefly complied, the officer said, but while being escorted to the police car in handcuffs took off running. He was caught after about 20 yards.
Tharp was taken to the Texas County Jail and placed in a restraint chair after continuing to be combative, the officer said.
The woman said she had been assaulted but told authorities she did not want to pursue charges. At one point during the tussle with Tharp, a third officer placed her in handcuffs after she refused commands to back away, police said. Photos were taken of bruising on one of her arms.
The reporting officer said Tharp was positive for hepatitis C. Both officers who tussled with Tharp had blood on their skin –– apparently from Tharp –– and were tested at Texas County Memorial Hospital to be checked out.
The incident was Tharp’s second physical confrontation with Houston police. In July 2014, he was charged in a similar incident in which he allegedly assaulted a police officer and fled on foot while being arrested.