SPRINGDALE, Ark. — New details have been released about the high-speed pursuit involving an allegedly stolen U-Haul that started in Oklahoma and ended 60 miles later in Springdale.
A news release from the Locust Grove Police Department (LGPD) said police were alerted to a stolen vehicle by a safety camera. Police attempted to initiate a traffic stop, but the stolen vehicle evaded law enforcement, striking a vehicle in the process. The car was allegedly struck head-on near Colcord, Oklahoma.
LGPD said the person whose vehicle was struck was evaluated and appeared to be okay, being released from the scene shortly after.
The Tontitown Police Department (TPD) said that at around 5:13 p.m. on Feb. 7, TPD officers assisted multiple other law enforcement agencies with a high-speed pursuit.
A "tactical intervention" was performed by a Tontitown officer to end the chase, but the maneuver resulted in the officer's vehicle rolling multiple times, according to a release from TPD. The officer was treated for minor injuries.
TPD said the speed during the pursuit reached over 120 mph.
The pursuit first started in Locust Grove, Oklahoma, around 60 miles away from where the chase ended on I-49 in Springdale.
The TPD release states the U-Haul cargo van was stolen. Cory Robert Mercier, 21, and Trenton Johnson, 21, both of Michigan, were arrested. Officers located firearms and Molotov cocktails inside the U-Haul.
TPD said Mercier and Johnson are currently being held in the Benton County Detention Center and are each accused of aggravated assault, criminal conspiracy, possession of destructive devices, fleeing, battery, criminal mischief, and resisting arrest.
Both men are wanted by Michigan authorities for attempting to run over police officers, according to TPD.
Four Tontitown police cars were damaged during the pursuit, as well as multiple vehicles from other law enforcement agencies between Locust Grove and Springdale.
"A report will be done and sent over to the District Attorney’s Office for further review requesting charges to be filed regarding the incident that took place," LGPD said.
Keith Lindley, Public Information Officer for TPD, says that police chases are something they see too often, so their officers are prepared.
"We have two intersecting highways that run directly through Tontitown. We're surrounded on every side by much larger metropolitan towns in Northwest Arkansas. So, there's often times that people, when they run from the police, they just pass through Tontitown," Lindley said. "Every single one of our officers are trained and certified to do exactly what happened yesterday. It's something that we know we take an aggressive approach toward. But the first priority is our community."
"We were just really fortunate to be able to have that many be able to respond so quickly. And we think that that definitely helped kind of keep our people safe here," Lindley said.
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