'Defeated, Worn Out' Suspect Placed on $2 Million Bond Following Chesterfield Township Manhunt

Kidnapping suspect turned fugitive Jonathan Elbers was placed on a $2 million bond during his arraignment Monday, New Baltimore district court officials said.

Elbers, 23 of Tuscola County, was formally charged in 42-2 District Court via video from Macomb County Jail.

A $2 million cash/surety bond was set for charges pertaining to his attempted kidnapping-and-murder plot of an ex-girlfriend early Friday morning. A $100,000 bond was also set for a recently added charge of first-degree home invasion. That charge pertains to when he allegedly broke into a township home twice during a three-day manhunt in Chesterfield Township, police and court officials said.

A preliminary exam is scheduled for April 15 before 42-2 District Court Judge William Hackel III.

Details emerge from time on run

On Monday, more details surfaced about Elbers' actions during an extensive search for his whereabouts.

Bloody from a head wound from his would-be kidnapping victim, Elbers hunkered down in the woods in the dark hours after the 1 a.m. Friday attack in Chesterfield Township, police said Monday about his time on the run.

When the sun rose, Elbers was cold and desperate for a place to restore energy, get warm and clean himself. Covered in blood, he seeks refuge by breaking into a house on 25 Mile near Interstate 94, where he regroups, changes clothes and puts on a baseball cap to cover the wound, Detective Sgt. Deron Myers said.

The homeowner was on vacation during the break-in.

Elbers then started walking in the New Haven Road area Friday afternoon--where he was spotted by a passersby before an extensive chase ensued. He then likely returned to the house to continue eluding police that night, police said.

Another sighting and chase followed Saturday night, as well as the homeowner's return and report of the break-in. Elbers was found Sunday afternoon inside a deer blind in woods by the house. He complied with an officer's demands and expressed a desire to give up the chase.

"He was defeated. He was worn out. It just kept coming down to an endurance competition," Myers said. "He kept running and we kept chasing him and finally we just wore him down.”

No known history of violence

Elbers did not have a violent criminal history before the alleged attack in Chesterfield Township. His encounters with the law were related to alcohol and marijuana possession, Myers said.

He has been charged of intent to murder; first-degree home invasion, unlawful imprisonment, and assaulting an officer causing injury, as well as the recently added first-degree home invasion charge. He could face up to life in prison upon conviction of the charges.

Since his arrest, he has been complying with the investigation, police said.

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