Motorist who led mid-Missouri authorities on high-speed pursuit is captured

A Missouri state trooper pulls over a motorist in 2022 (file photo courtesy of Missouri Highway Patrol social media specialist Meghan Basinger)

Charges are pending this morning against the suspect who led authorities on a high-speed pursuit Wednesday afternoon on a highway in mid-Missouri’s Moniteau and Cole counties.

Moniteau County Sheriff Tony Wheatley tells 939 the Eagle that it started when deputies attempted to stop a vehicle on Highway 50 near California. Wheatley says the suspect fled at speeds of 100 miles per hour, heading east into Cole County and then back onto Highway 50 west into California.

Authorities spiked the vehicle, which pulled into a home on Vaughn drive west of California. Sheriff Wheatley says one California officer who spiked the suspect’s truck sustained injuries from deploying strips and had to get stitches in his hand. The sheriff says the California Police Department was also involved in the pursuit and that one of their patrol vehicles was damaged when the light bar flew off the top.

State Rep. Tim Taylor (R-Speed) tells 939 the Eagle that Missouri state troopers were also involved in the pursuit. The suspect was driving a pickup truck and has been captured. The suspect’s name is not being released, pending the filing of charges.