Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Georgia man and is looking for a second, unidentified suspect after a high-speed chase Thursday night culminated in a wreck on Bluecutt Road.
The pursuit started when deputies with the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office pulled over a black Chrysler 300 with no tag on Highway 82 in Alabama, Pickens County Sheriff Jordan Powell told The Dispatch Friday afternoon.
“They were pulled over for having no tag near McShan Lumber,” Powell said. “The deputy asked (the driver) to step out of the car and he took off.”
The suspects were originally heading east, but they turned around and raced toward Mississippi, Powell said.
Lowndes County Sheriff Eddie Hawkins said the suspects crossed into Mississippi at about 7 p.m., and LCSO and Columbus Police Department joined the pursuit, which exceeded 100 miles per hour at times. The suspects fled down Highway 82, exiting onto Highway 45 North and, eventually, onto Bluecutt Road, Hawkins said.
The driver lost control of the car and crashed in the 3400 block of Bluecutt, Hawkins said, near the intersection with Fifth Street North. The driver and a passenger bailed out and ran.
“In the car were a couple handguns and a bunch of ammunition,” Hawkins said. “Along the path where they ran they dropped three AR-style rifles.”
Officers caught the passenger, identified as Jalen Jamar Clayton, 22, of Baconton, Georgia, but the driver, who as yet is not identified, escaped, Hawkins said.
Clayton was charged with disorderly conduct, and will be charged for an amount of ecstasy he had on him at the time of his arrest, Hawkins said.
Clayton was still in custody at the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center as of press time.
He will be extradited back to Alabama to face charges there, Hawkins said.
Powell said he didn’t know what charges the suspects would face once they’re returned to Alabama, but he suspected “at least one or two felonies.”
“I’m really thankful for the working relationship I have with (Hawkins) and (Columbus Police Chief Joseph Daughtry),” Powell said. “I greatly appreciate their guys helping ours.”
The investigation is ongoing. If anyone has any information about this case, please contact the LCSO at (662) 328-6788 or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at (800) 530-7151, or use the P3 smartphone app.
Tipsters remain anonymous, and are eligible for a cash award if the information leads to an arrest.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
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