High speed chase ends at railroad crossing

A 16 year old male juvenile, who stole a vehicle on September 28th, had his getaway foiled by a train on Thursday night in Picayune, according to Assistant Police Chief Jeremy Magri.

At 10:39pm on September 28th, the juvenile approached a 1991 Honda Accord at a local gas station on Highway 11 North and asked for a ride to an apartment complex from the female driver of the vehicle. The female driver told the juvenile that she would, but first had to make a purchase from the store. She went inside the store, but accidently left her keys in the ignition of her car without realizing she had done so.

While the female driver went inside, the juvenile got into the car and sat in the driver’s seat. When the female driver returned outside, she noticed the juvenile in the driver’s seat and went back into the store and asked a male person in the store to help her get the juvenile out of the car. The male person approached the vehicle to remove the juvenile, but the juvenile refused and then shouted in a loud voice that he had a handgun. The juvenile fled the scene in the stolen vehicle headed north on Highway 11.

Picayune Police were notified and dispatched to the gas station. The female driver remembered the juvenile asking for a ride to the Blue Spruce apartments and provided this information to the Picayune Police who immediately issued a BOLO alert (Be On the Look Out) on the car using the description of the juvenile.

A short time later, a vehicle matching the description of the stolen Accord was observed at the apartment complex by a police officer. The officer immediately notified dispatch to run a check on the tag and the information came back verifying it was the stolen vehicle, Magri stated.

At this time, the vehicle left the scene at a high rate of speed, which resulted in the Picayune Police giving chase. Officers attempted to make a stop on Cooper Road, but the juvenile refused to stop. The juvenile drove down Cooper Road where police officers attempted to perform a traffic stop, at which time the juvenile refused to stop. The vehicle continued on Cooper Road to Hwy 43 and drove West back to Hwy 11, and turned south at a high rate of speed.

As he was being pursued down Hwy 11 through downtown Picayune at a high rate of speed, the juvenile attempted numerous times to quickly stop the stolen vehicle trying to get the Picayune Police officers to wreck by hitting the rear of his stolen vehicle.

The juvenile made a right turn on Bruce Street and his path was blocked by a train at the railroad crossing. The suspect was asked to leave his vehicle, but refused to obey, and officers escorted him from the vehicle to the ground. The juvenile continued to resist by trying to pull away his arms to avoid being handcuffed by the officers before he was finally put under control by the officers.

Magri said the juvenile was taken in custody for Taking of a Motor Vehicle (Felony), Fleeing or Eluding a Law Enforcement Officer in a Motor Vehicle (felony), Reckless Driving, No Drivers License (a check with NCIC provided this data), Disorderly Conduct (Failure to Comply), and Resisting Arrest. The juvenile was later transported to the Jones County Juvenile Detention Center.