Investigators seized more than 3 pounds of suspected methamphetamine from a driver who fled police and crashed in Novato, according to the county drug squad.
The suspect’s car also contained a Beretta handgun, 400 oxycodone pills, cocaine, 21 cellphones, 13 laptops and other drugs, said sheriff’s Sgt. Ryan Petersen, assistant commander of the Marin County Major Crimes Task Force.
Matthew Daniel Mistachkin, 38, of San Rafael was driving a 2020 BMW in the Ignacio area on Monday when a Novato police officer saw him make an unsafe lane change, Petersen said.
Mistachkin allegedly tried to flee, came to a dead end and backed the BMW into the police car while turning around to escape.
The chase continued to Highway 101, where the BMW went out of control and crashed into a retaining wall just north of Atherton Avenue. Based on the evidence in the car, police called in the drug task force to investigate.
Mistachkin was booked into the Marin County Jail on suspicion of assault and evading police. The drug investigation is continuing, and anyone with information can contact the task force anonymously at 1-800-369-4694.
Mistachkin has been released on bail. He could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.
Mistachkin was in federal custody as recently as November for allegedly violating the terms of his supervised release in a meth distribution case, according to court dockets. That case stemmed from a 2010 arrest in San Francisco, where police found him dozing inside an idling BMW that contained a quarter pound of meth, a .45-caliber Colt pistol, seven cellphones and $2,410 in cash, police reported in an affidavit.
In a sentencing memorandum for that case, a public defender described Mistachkin as a drug addict who suffered a “horrific” childhood involving 15 foster homes and repeated abuse. His first criminal conviction was at age 19, the attorney wrote.