AUGUSTA — A Vassalboro man was sentenced Tuesday to 30 months in prison after pleading guilty to several charges stemming from an incident in which he struck a Waterville police officer with the car door of a white Infinity as he sped away from a traffic stop.

Christopher Ratte Waterville Police Department photo

He then led police on a nine-minute chase at speeds over 100 mph before they quit pursuing him.

Christopher F. Ratte, 39, was arrested July 7, the day after the incident. Police found him hiding in a residence in a pile of pillows behind a wall, according to prosecutor Christy Stilphen, an assistant district attorney.

He pleaded guilty to reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, operating after revocation, eluding an officer, assault and refusing to submit to arrest. He also admitted to violating probation. Ratte also was fined $1,000.

Stilphen said Waterville police stopped Ratte around 8 p.m. July 6 on College Avenue while he was driving a vehicle with an expired inspection. Police suspected he had given them a false name as he didn’t have identification on him and could not provide the Social Security number of the person he claimed to be.

A passenger of Ratte later identified him, and one of the officers who had stopped him, Nate Bernier, determined Ratte had a revoked driver’s license. Stilphen said Bernier grabbed Ratte by an arm and asked him to get out of the vehicle. Instead, Ratte drove off and the vehicle’s door struck Bernier’s arm and the window post hit his leg.

Bernier was not injured.

Officers from multiple departments joined the chase of Ratte, who exceeded speeds of 100 mph at some points, reversed direction several times and swerved at officers when they tried to stop the vehicle he was driving, Stilphen said. He also drove over the median several times and disregarded stop signs during the chase from Main Street in Waterville to Webb Road in Oakland.

At one point Ratte turned around on a dead-end road and drove at Waterville Police Sgt. Haley Fleming, and weaved between other police cruisers pursuing him, Stilphen said. At that point the chase was called off due to safety concerns.

The vehicle was found around 8:30 that night, behind a business on Kennedy Memorial Drive in Waterville. But police, despite using trained police dogs, were unable to locate Ratte. He was located the next day in the basement of a Vassalboro home after police, acting on a tip, “pinged” his phone to determine his location, Stilphen said.

Charges of aggravated operating after habitual offender revocation, driving to endanger, and criminal speed were dismissed as part of a plea deal.