Two-state chase ends near Saratoga

Editor’s note: The Saratoga Sun initially broke an abbreviated version of this story on our website Wednesday.

A police chase that began in Nebraska ended in a foot pursuit on I-80 at Walcott Junction Wednesday.

Troy Douglas, 23, Of Nashville, Tennessee, was arrested after leading police on a chase, disabling his car and pointing a gun at an officer before attempting to flee on foot.

According to David Wagener of Wyoming Highway Patrol, the chase began early Wednesday morning in Nebraska. Nebraska police chased the suspect, but quit the pursuit when the suspect fled into Wyoming.

The Nebraska authorities alerted their counterparts in Wyoming, and Wyoming troopers near the Nebraska border began to search for the vehicle, a Chrysler 300 with temporary license plates.

Officers near the border did not locate the suspect, but around 10:30 a.m. in Arlington, Wyoming, an officer on patrol spotted the vehicle westbound on I-80 and gave chase.

The suspect vehicle stopped just west of Walcott Junction on I-80, according to eyewitness Sarah Hutchins, a former reporter for the Saratoga Sun.

Hutchins, who was going to Rawlins to go shopping, saw the car and the pursuing police officers go past as she was stopped waiting to enter I-80 traffic in the construction zone.

The car was so close and going so fast, she thought the suspect’s vehicle had hit her car, she said.

“I felt something and then I saw the car and I thought Oh gosh, is my car OK?” she said. “I couldn’t tell if hit me or not because it was so close to me.

“I felt the car before I saw it.”

The chase continued westbound on I-80 for a short distance past the Saratoga exit. At that point, it became disabled due to damage to the tires caused by police officers using spike strips on the vehicle earlier in the pursuit, Wagener said.

After the suspect’s vehicle stopped, he exited the vehicle and pointed a handgun at a sheriff’s deputy, according to a release by the Wyoming Highway Patrol. Douglas dropped the handgun and attempted to run away from police, but was apprehended after a brief foot chase.

Hutchins said after the vehicle and pursuing police officers went past, she got on I-80 to continue her trip to Rawlins. She then came upon the end of the chase after the suspect’s vehicle was disabled.

“As I was driving, I saw the car that flew past me sitting on the west side of the interstate, and from what I was seeing, the guy got out of his car, went up toward the hill and ran across the eastbound lanes,” Hutchins said.

Wagener was unsure why the suspect fled authorities in Nebraska, but said that a large quantity of money was seized by the agency. A release issued Monday by the highway patrol said police found and seized $10,200 from Douglas’ car.

Douglas was transported to Carbon County Detention Center in Rawlins and was charged with eluding law enforcement, reckless driving, driving on a suspended driver’s license and driving on a closed road. Douglas may face additional charges, according to a release by the Wyoming Highway Patrol.