A Port Richey man faces eight felony charges after fleeing from a Pasco County deputy before turning around to drive directly toward him and being found in possession of various drugs, according to the Sheriff's Office.

A deputy attempted to stop Joseph Lee Paul, 25, just after 1 a.m. Tuesday, when he failed to stop at a stop sign near Allyson Street and Zimmerman Road in Port Richey. He continued to drive west on Allyson Street, which is a dead-end road, deputies said.

When he reached the end, Paul turned around and began driving head-on toward the deputy's vehicle, the report said.

"I was in fear he was going to strike me with his truck," the deputy wrote in an arrest report. "At the last second, the defendant maneuvered his vehicle around me and continued to flee my traffic stop."

The deputy said Paul reached speeds higher than 100 miles per hour, and at times veered off the roadway and into oncoming traffic. Eventually, Paul came to a stop near Dusty Lane and Little Road in New Port Richey, the Sheriff's Office said.

A search of Paul's Chevy Colorado yielded several drugs, including cocaine, ecstasy and marijuana, deputies said. The deputy also found three cell phones, digital scales, baggies and cash.

A passenger confirmed to the deputy that Paul was attempting to hide the drugs by throwing them out the window and eating them, the Sheriff's Office said.

Paul faces several charges: aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, possession of cocaine with intent to sell, possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell, two counts of possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting an officer without violence, tampering with evidence, fleeing and eluding, and driving without a valid license.

He was transported to the Pasco County jail, where he remained Tuesday afternoon in lieu of $201,750 bond.

Contact Megan Reeves at mreeves@tampabay.com. Follow @mareevs.