Cirque de Tribune wrote:
A drive-off incident at a Maryland gas station turned into a 50-minute police chase that ended with the arrest of a driver and the recovery of a carousel stolen earlier this week from a suburban Chicago carnival, authorities said.
Allen Frederick Emerson, 45, is being held in lieu of $100,000 bond in a West Virginia jail, charged with unlawful assault of a police officer, felony destruction of property and bringing stolen property into the state, according to the Preston County, W. Va., Sheriff's Department.
[...]
The carousel caper began Tuesday when a man came to the site outside the Fox Valley Mall, where workers were setting up carnival equipment, according to Michael Salerno, owner of St. Charles-based Windy City Amusements Inc.
Salerno said a man who had recently applied for a job with Windy City told other workers he had been told to fuel up a large white box truck containing the carousel.
The suspect allegedly drove off in the truck, which had a large carousel horse next to the words "Family Fun Festivals" painted on its side and a Windy City Amusements decal on the doors.
[...]
An alert for the stolen truck was posted on a carnival Internet message board. On Tuesday afternoon, a woman who works for another amusement company reported seeing the vehicle near South Bend, Ind.
[...]
That afternoon, a Kingwood, W. Va., police officer spotted the vehicle near that town and tried to pull it over, but the driver refused to stop. A pursuit ensued, with the sheriff's department and West Virginia State Police joining the chase.
At one point, a sheriff's deputy positioned his cruiser ahead of the fleeing truck, but Emerson rammed the rear of the cruiser, extensively damaging the police car and injuring the deputy, police said.
The chase continued south on West Virginia Highway 26. At the intersection with U.S. Highway 50, state police put out "stop sticks," puncturing the truck's tires. Officers finally boxed in and stopped the vehicle at U.S. 50 and West Virginia Highway 72 near Macomber, W. Va.
Emerson then surrendered, police said. He was taken into custody and was being held today in Tygart Valley Regional Jail.
Allen Frederick Emerson, 45, is being held in lieu of $100,000 bond in a West Virginia jail, charged with unlawful assault of a police officer, felony destruction of property and bringing stolen property into the state, according to the Preston County, W. Va., Sheriff's Department.
[...]
The carousel caper began Tuesday when a man came to the site outside the Fox Valley Mall, where workers were setting up carnival equipment, according to Michael Salerno, owner of St. Charles-based Windy City Amusements Inc.
Salerno said a man who had recently applied for a job with Windy City told other workers he had been told to fuel up a large white box truck containing the carousel.
The suspect allegedly drove off in the truck, which had a large carousel horse next to the words "Family Fun Festivals" painted on its side and a Windy City Amusements decal on the doors.
[...]
An alert for the stolen truck was posted on a carnival Internet message board. On Tuesday afternoon, a woman who works for another amusement company reported seeing the vehicle near South Bend, Ind.
[...]
That afternoon, a Kingwood, W. Va., police officer spotted the vehicle near that town and tried to pull it over, but the driver refused to stop. A pursuit ensued, with the sheriff's department and West Virginia State Police joining the chase.
At one point, a sheriff's deputy positioned his cruiser ahead of the fleeing truck, but Emerson rammed the rear of the cruiser, extensively damaging the police car and injuring the deputy, police said.
The chase continued south on West Virginia Highway 26. At the intersection with U.S. Highway 50, state police put out "stop sticks," puncturing the truck's tires. Officers finally boxed in and stopped the vehicle at U.S. 50 and West Virginia Highway 72 near Macomber, W. Va.
Emerson then surrendered, police said. He was taken into custody and was being held today in Tygart Valley Regional Jail.
