High-speed pursuit of stolen Durangos in Monroe County; suspects part of 'very organized ring'
FOX 2 (WJBK) - An attempted traffic stop by Dundee police led to a high-speed pursuit on US-23 of two stolen Dodge Durangos early Monday morning.
Investigators believe the thefts are being conducted by an auto theft team, with the thieves using advanced technology to disarm and start many of the vehicles without keys.
At 3:24 a.m. police attempted to stop the drivers of the two gray SUVs for reckless driving in the village before both fled onto the freeway southbound at 3:24 a.m. The officer followed as speeds reached over 100 miles per hour in light traffic.
UPDATE: Suspects in stolen Dodge Durango police chase spotted at Whiteford construction site
Both vehicles with Williams Brothers dealership identifying plates exited at Exit 5 and headed west on US-223. while Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputies and Michigan State Troopers joined to assist.
On US-223, and about a mile west of US-23, one of the vehicles appeared to run out of gas and the other vehicle abruptly stopped. Both drivers, one of which was described as a Black male, approximately 5 feet, 9 inches with a slim build and wearing black sweatpants and a black shirt, took off running into a field.
Other law enforcement officers checked the Williams Brothers Jeep-Dodge-Chrysler dealership on Ann Arbor Road and found the building secure.
However, broken glass was found in empty new-car sales parking spaces. Williams Brothers management arrived and confirmed that vehicles were missing and stolen.
A K-9 officer from Michigan State Police responded to search and the Drone teams from Dundee Police and the Monroe County Sheriff's Office were deployed to assist.
After a thorough search of the entire area, the subjects were not found. Both vehicles were recovered and both contained physical evidence which is now being processed by a crime scene technician from the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.
All evidence will be shared with the Michigan State Police crime lab to help identify these individuals. A third Durango was also taken but was found abandoned nearby and recovered.
Police says that the suspects appear to be "part of a very organized auto theft team." The recovered SUVs are believed to be connected to similar thefts in Adrian over the weekend and several other locations throughout Michigan and Ohio.
Suspects in stolen Dodge Durango police chase spotted at Whiteford construction site
Investigators believe the thefts are being conducted by an auto theft team, with the thieves using advanced technology to disarm and start many of the vehicles without keys.
Anyone with information regarding any of the thefts is asked to contact Officer Josh Stump at jstump@villageofdundee.net or Detective Ron Pongracz at rpongracz@villageofdundee.net