Collegedale police apprehended four suspects in two separate car chases Tuesday afternoon, and later found out three of the suspects are linked to a southeast crime ring.
It started when a business owner on Little Debbie Parkway called police at 12:30 p.m. about two vehicles exhibiting suspicious behavior. They told police the cars were switching license plates and one suspect was putting on a wig, according to a release from the Collegedale Police Department.
The two vehicles left before police got there. When the business owner was explaining to police what they saw, one of the vehicles in question returned to the parking lot.
Police would later find out during the time the suspects left the parking lot, they were trying to pass a stolen check at Regions bank in Collegedale with a stolen ID.
Officers tried to approach the vehicle, but it drove off and a pursuit began. While two officers were in pursuit of the vehicle, the release said, the other vehicle joined in the car chase at Little Debbie Parkway and Apison Pike.
“At this point, two Collegedale police officers were pursuing two suspect vehicles simultaneously,” the release said.
The cars were weaving in and out of traffic trying to evade the authorities. The second vehicle – the one that joined the chase – stopped at the 5300 block of Ooltewah Ringgold Road. A female accomplice was taken into custody without incident, the release said.
The first vehicle who police were originally chasing ran a red light at Main Street and Lee Highway and crashed into another car. Two of the three occupants got out of the car, and started running on foot, the release said.
The suspect who remained in the car drove away, and crashed again on Lee Highway and also tried to escape on foot. He was apprehended when two citizens, one with a concealed carry permit, held the suspect at gunpoint until police arrived.
One of the two who escaped the first time was found in a dumpster. The other suspect was found a few hours later hiding under a nearby truck, the release said.
The three males apprehended are from Florida and part of a crime ring operating throughout the southeast, the release said.
“The Collegedale Police Department would like to thank the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office for assisting in the apprehension, as well as working the traffic crash,” the release said. “Special thanks to all of the citizens and area businesses that were observant and immediately called the Collegedale Police Department.”
The names of the suspects have not been released, a spokesperson for the department said, because the investigation is ongoing. The spokesperson also said the department hopes to release the names and charges Wednesday afternoon.