SHELBY — Three Dayton men were taken into custody after a high-speed pursuit Saturday night that ended with the vehicle crashing in Shelby.
All three were uninjured and taken to the Ashland County Jail, according to Sgt. Daniel Kumor with the the Ashland Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
A rifle was found inside the vehicle, he said.
The driver of the vehicle, 20, was taken to the hospital complaining of a headache, but was released to the patrol after being examined. Two passengers in the vehicle were both 22 years old.
The Kent Police Department earlier had issued a “be on the lookout” for a black Toyota SUV connected to a shooting incident in the Portage County city. Details of the shooting incident were not available Sunday morning.
Kumor said a trooper in Ashland County spotted the vehicle on I-71 at 9:37 p.m.
“Troopers pulled it over. But as they began the process of trying to get the three men out of the vehicle, they took off,” he said.
Troopers pursued the vehicle south on I-71 with speeds topping more than 100 miles per hour, according to Kumor.
The vehicle made it into Mansfield and then raced toward Shelby on Ohio 39. The vehicle hit a culvert while trying to turn into a business parking lot at Lewis Floors, 3925 Ohio 39 on the south side of the city.
“I am not sure what they were trying to do at that point,” Kumor said. “It didn’t look like they lost control.”
Officers with the Richland County Sheriff’s Office, Shelby Police Department and Ontario Police Department were on the scene after the crash occurred and suspects were arrested, according to Kumor.
Kumor said he had not yet spoken to Kent authorities and that formal charges had not been filed as of Sunday morning. He said the Ashland County Prosecutor’s Office was reviewing the case on Sunday.