An assistant coach at Porters Chapel Academy robbed a bank on U.S. 61 North at midday Tuesday before leading deputies on a chase through eastern Warren County and wrecking his van into a sheriff’s department car, Sheriff Martin Pace said.

No injuries were reported.

Derrick Collins, 45, 170 Shannon Lane, an assistant high school football coach and junior high basketball coach, is accused of wearing a mask as he walked into the Britton & Koontz Bank at 2059 U.S. 61 North, where he threatened a teller with violence in his demand for money, Pace said.

After being given the money, Collins left the bank on foot, Pace said.

A witness told deputies a white van left the area minutes after the robbery, and a vehicle fitting the description was spotted eight minutes later on Mount Alban Road.

The van’s driver ignored sirens and lights and continued east on Scott Road then north on Mississippi 27 where deputies threw down spike strips that flattened two of the van’s tires.

The van continued, to Warriors Trail, where it ran into an investigator’s car. Collins was arrested and no weapon was found, Pace said.

Collins was in the Warren County Jail this morning without bond pending a court hearing planned for this afternoon.

The arrest is not Collins’ first brush with the law.

Records show he was convicted in 1995 of bank robbery, burglary and uttering a forgery in Harrison County. He was sentenced to seven years in prison and was released after serving five.

In Vicksburg, Collins was charged twice with embezzlement from Waffle House, once a felony and once a misdemeanor, Vicksburg police Lt. Bobby Stewart said this morning.

After Collins paid restitution on the felony theft of $3,125 in 2008, Stewart said, the charges were dropped.

The Vicksburg Police Department had four misdemeanor warrants for traffic violations against Collins when he was arrested Tuesday, Stewart said.

Although dates of service could not be confirmed, Collins reportedly served in the U.S. military and was employed by a police department on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

In Vicksburg, Collins has been a part-time coach at PCA for about a year.

Headmaster Doug Branning issued a written statement this morning, but declined to answer questions.

“We are saddened and shocked by the actions of Mr. Derrick Collins,” the statement said. “Mr. Collins has been well respected by the students, parents and faculty at Porters Chapel Academy. Mr. Collins is not a classroom teacher at PCA. However, he is a part-time coach in football and basketball.”

Collins also has been listed for a year as a coach for a youth league footall team, the Vicksburg Eagles, which plays at the Vicksburg Junior High School field on Baldwin Ferry Road near Mission 66. The league is for ages 6 to 12.