A Goodyear man has been charged with four felony crimes and is now being held at the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office jail.
While visiting family in Heber-Overgaard for the Independence Day holiday, Zebulon Cox, 38, was arrested on June 1.
In a statement released on July 6, NCSO said the suspect was taken into custody following a DUI investigation and later charged with four felonies, including two counts of DUI.
Specifically, Cox’s offenses are listed as aggravated DUI (court records show Cox was arrested while under suspension for another DUI in 2019) and DUI involving a passenger under the age of 15.
He was also charged with felony child abuse and unlawful flight from law enforcement.
In an email, NCSO Public Information Officer Tori Gorman stated the offender was also charged with class 2 felony child abuse “due to the driver putting the child in extreme danger.
“An NCSO deputy attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the driver while investigating the original call,” Gorman stated.
Deputies initially attempted to stop Cox’s vehicle at milepost 310 on state route 277 in the Heber area.
According to police, Cox allegedly “fled from the deputy northbound on SR 277, reaching speeds of nearly 100 mph.”
Gorman notes one child was in the vehicle during the incident and stated Cox was stopped after traveling approximately 5½ miles up the highway.
Gorman didn’t comment on whether Cox admitted to consuming alcohol before driving to deputies at the scene but noted a blood sample was obtained and was awaiting examination from the Arizona Department of Public Safety Crime Lab.
Cox's only other criminal filing in Arizona is the previously mentioned charge for extreme DUI, involving a blood alcohol content level of .20 or more.
While Maricopa County Superior Court dismissed three of the four charges against Cox, he plead guilty to the DUI charge and had his license suspended as a result.
Online records show one of the counts against Cox included an aggravated DUI violation for driving with a child younger than 15.
