A bench warrant has been issued for a man well-known to Columbia Falls and Flathead County law enforcement after he failed to show up for his Oct. 30 sentencing in Flathead County District Court.

Aaron Martin McGarry, 38, of Kalispell was charged with felony assault on a police officer after a run-in with the authorities on Feb. 10, according to court documents. McGarry was sitting inside a running blue Ford Focus and allegedly shifted the vehicle into drive when Flathead County Sheriff's Office deputies tried to pull him out.

The compact car pulled along the two deputies for a short stretch, court documents said. At least one feared the possibility of being run over.

After the deputies disengaged, the Focus fled southbound on Antelope Trail near Whitefish and disappeared, court documents said.

Police eventually caught up with him, but now he is on the lam again, with bail set at $100,000 by Judge Paul Sullivan.

McGarry boasts a lengthy criminal history, including his arrest during a standoff on Liberty Street in Kalispell in May 2022. In that case, McGarry received a three-year sentence with the Department of Corrections on a felony theft conviction.

He also has a 2020 criminal endangerment conviction stemming from an incident where he allegedly used a Taser on the mother of his children who lived in Columbia Falls at the time.