ELLSWORTH – Police are looking for a local man who rammed the van he was driving into a police cruiser before speeding away and later fleeing.

Officer Jeremy Cox attempted to stop a white Chevy Astro van on Water Street at about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday for a traffic violation. Police said they saw the driver earlier in the day and knew his driver’s license was suspended.

Cox was following the man on Bayside Road when the driver suddenly stopped in the middle of the road, put the van in reverse and rammed into the cruiser, Lt. Harold Page said.

The man, whose name was not released Wednesday, sped off.

Cox was inside the cruiser at the time of the crash but was uninjured, police said. Damage was estimated at more than $4,000.

Officers chased the driver but lost track of him until about an hour later, when they found the abandoned van on Old Tinker Farm Way, a dirt road that leads from Bayside toward the Union River.

Police said a set of footprints led them to an area where the man buried his clothing in the snow. Officers recovered a baseball hat with the word “Navy” on it, a dark-colored coat and a shirt.

Footprints also led down the snow-covered road to Bayside Road. A Maine State Police tracking dog followed the man’s scent to the main road, but the scent abruptly ended there, Page said. Police believe the man may have hitchhiked from Bayside Road.

Page said he expected to have an arrest warrant for the man today. The driver likely would face multiple charges, including aggravated criminal mischief and eluding police. Also, the van he was driving was registered to his wife, who reported it stolen, police said.