A wild tale that even Inver Grove Heights police had a hard time believing unfolded early Sunday when a man with multiple warrants showed up at a police station to pick up a friend who had been released after a drunken driving arrest.
Man with warrants driving stolen vehicle picks up friend at Inver Grove Heights Police Department, leads officers on pursuit
One officer suffered minor injuries in what police described as a “dynamic and dangerous” event.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
September 3, 2024 at 6:33PM
On top of that, the man was driving a stolen vehicle with incorrect plates and took off as an officer tried to take him into custody, setting off a pursuit.
That officer was injured but not seriously, a statement from Inver Grove Heights police said.
Events started in the overnight hours when a DWI officer and a second officer were conducting business checks and came upon two people slumped over inside a vehicle in the 7800 block of Cahill Avenue. The passenger was arrested over outstanding warrants and the female driver because of a drug-related DWI offense, police said.
The woman was booked and released under the condition that a sober person pick her up. She called a male friend who came to the station in a pickup truck with plates registered to a Toyota minivan. Police also discovered the pickup had been stolen and the man had three outstanding warrants.
As an officer opened the pickup door to arrest the driver, the man “slammed on the gas and took off,” the statement from police said.
Another officer attempted to follow the fleeing suspect and spotted him driving south on Hwy. 52. An officer from South St. Paul joined the pursuit, blocked the vehicle and apprehended the suspect, police said.
The man was booked into Dakota County jail on charges ranging from assault of a peace officer to fleeing in a motor vehicle.
Two other people in the vehicle were released without arrest, police said.
Inver Grove Heights thanked other agencies for assisting with the “dynamic and dangerous incident,” the statement said.
Coincidentally, the Inver Grove Heights DWI officer has made three arrests over the past few months with incidents that began in the Police Department’s parking lot, and two of them, including Sunday’s, were vehicle pursuits.
The man arrested is due in court on Wednesday and charges will be filed then, a spokeswoman for the Dakota County Attorney’s Office said.
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