LEWISTON — The man accused of stealing a car and fleeing from police Thursday has a long criminal history that includes pharmacy robberies and the theft of cars and drugs.

Lewiston Police Officer Jeff Burkhardt detains Alexander Madore, 33, Thursday afternoon on Ash Street in Lewiston after he was suspected of crashing a vehicle on Main Street and fleeing. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Alexander Xavier Madore, 33, of Lewiston, made his first court appearance Friday on a slew of charges stemming from the Thursday afternoon chase. Bail was set at $5,000 cash and he was returned to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn, where he remained Friday night.

Police said that at about 2:30 p.m., Madore stole a car on Strawberry Avenue and led police on an erratic, high-speed chase that ended minutes later when he crashed the car on Main Street. 

Madore attempted to flee on foot, police said, but several people in the area helped track him down and he was ultimately arrested at Canal and Ash streets. 

For hours after the wreck, police were unable to determine Madore’s identity. After calling for help from Maine State Police with a fingerprint kit, investigators confirmed that the suspect was Madore and they arrested him. 

In connection with Thursday’s chase, Madore is charged with unauthorized use of property, failure to provide police with a name, driving with a suspended license, leaving the scene of an accident, eluding police and violating conditions of release. 

Because some of the charges are felonies, he was not required to enter a plea at a court hearing Friday morning. At the video hearing in 8th District Court, Judge Susan Oram set bail at $5,000 cash. 

Androscoggin County Deputy District Attorney Andrew Matulis had asked for bail to be set higher, at $20,000. He cited Madore’s long criminal history as well as the fact that at the time of Thursday’s chase, Madore was already wanted in Lincoln County where he is suspected of stealing a car, burglarizing vehicles and driving with a suspended license. 

Matulis also pointed out that Madore was clocked driving 60 mph during the police chase, and in busy sections of the city. 

Attorney Jason Ranger, who represented Madore on Friday, sought a cash bail of $2,500 or $250 with supervised release. 

Ranger said Madore has family in Kennebunk and a friend in Lewiston with whom he could stay if released on bail. He said Madore has been working through a labor agency and was set to interview next week with an Auburn manufacturer. He is working with a counselor on managing his medications, Ranger said. 

The attorney said Madore is a volunteer at the Trinity Church in Lewiston and a 2015 a graduate of the Androscoggin County Drug Court. 

At the time of Thursday’s chase, Madore had been living with a friend on Oak Street in Lewiston, police said. He was considered a transient with previous addresses in Sabattus, Auburn and Portland, among others.

Madore’s criminal problems date back to 2009 when he was arrested, at the age of 21, for driving while intoxicated. He was convicted, fined $500 and ordered to surrender his license. 

In 2012, Madore and another man were caught, charged and convicted of robbing one pharmacy and attempting to rob another. 

According to court records, in November of 2012, Madore and the second suspect robbed a pharmacy in Gray where Madore handed the pharmacist at a Rite Aid a note demanding prescription painkillers. 

Madore fled the store after he was given three bottles of Percocet, investigators said. One of the bottles was equipped with a GPS transmitter that allowed law enforcement officers to track their movements. 

Before they were caught, the pair attempted to rob a Rite-Aid in Lewiston, but Madore fled that store when he got nervous, according to court records. Investigators later tracked down both men and charged them in the heists. 

Madore was sentenced to six years in prison when he was convicted of the robberies, but the sentence was suspended and he was put on probation. 

His criminal history also includes convictions for theft, receiving stolen property, criminal trespass violating protection orders and assault. 

After the court hearing Friday morning, Madore was returned to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn where he remained later in the day.