Driver in high-speed pursuit captured after accident on National Road

Columbus police officers and firefighters work the scene of an accident after a high speed chase ended in a crash on National Road in Columbus, Ind., Friday, April 9, 2021. Officers with the Columbus Police Department were pursing an impaired driver when the crashed into another motorist. Mike Wolanin | The Republic

COLUMBUS, Ind. — Columbus police arrested a driver who led them on a lengthy high-speed pursuit from downtown Columbus to National Road which began at about 3 p.m. Friday on Second Street.

Police had received a call about a reckless driver involved in an accident on Second Street in downtown Columbus, said Lt. Matt Harris, Columbus Police Department spokesman.

Officers located the vehicle and attempted to stop it, but it sped away from the downtown area on Central Avenue, with several officers involved in the pursuit, Harris said. The driver, in a maroon Mustang, was traveling at speeds at around 90 mph on Central Avenue, Harris said.

The pursuing officers lost sight of the vehicle at one point, but then another officer located the Mustang and the pursuit began again, Harris said.

The driver, who has not yet been identified by police, drove his Mustang into the back of a black Cadillac on North National Road near Kroger Marketplace at around 3:20 p.m., a collision that disabled both vehicles, Harris said.

The suspect driver then fled on foot toward a nearby residential neighborhood, with officers again in pursuit, Harris said. Officers used an electronic stun gun to take the individual into custody, Harris said.

Police are still sorting out how many collisions may have occurred in the incident and know of at least one other accident before the collision with the Cadillac, Harris said.

No serious injuries were reported, although an individual in the Cadillac was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital to be checked, Harris said.

For more on this story, see Saturday’s Republic.