Two women accused of stealing items from an outlet store near Edinburgh on Wednesday were arrested after a 42-mile pursuit that ended in a crash involving a Jackson County officer on Interstate 65 near Austin, police report.
Tatyana J. Burgess, 22, of Nashville, Tennessee, faces preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement in a vehicle, possession of stolen property, possession of a schedule I, II, III, IV, V controlled substance and reckless driving in connection with the incident that began at about 4 p.m. That’s when police received a report of theft at the Polo Ralph Lauren store at Premium Outlet Mall.
Jernithia A. Bell, 20, also of Nashville, Tennessee, faces a preliminary charge of possession of stolen property in connection with the incident. She was a passenger in the Kia Optima Burgess was driving.
Both women were treated at Schneck Medical Center in Seymour after complaining of minor injuries before being booked into the Jackson County Jail in Brownstown, according to a news release from Sgt. Stephen Wheeles, public information officer for Indiana State Police Versailles Post.
Wheeles said the pursuit that ended in the crash involving Jackson County Sheriff’s Department Officer Zach Elliott near the 32 mile marker started when two women involved in the theft from the outlet store got into the Kia and headed south on I-65 from the Edinburgh exit at the 76 mile marker. Elliott was not injured in the crash.
Numerous state troopers along with officers with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department and Crothersville Police Department started looking for the Kia, Wheeles said.
Trooper Randel Miller spotted a vehicle matching the description of the suspect’s vehicle near the 40 mile marker north of Uniontown and tried to stop it, Wheeles said.
The driver of the vehicle, later identified as Burgess, accelerated and fled from Miller, Wheeles said.
Officers from several law enforcement agencies then attempted to place tire deflation devices on the road at various locations in an attempt to stop the Kia. Burgess eventually struck a device placed by an Austin police officer near that Scott County city, Wheeles said.
Near the 32 mile marker north of Austin, Burgess suddenly applied the brakes on her vehicle while on the right shoulder of the southbound lanes, Wheeles said, and that’s when Elliott hit the rear of Burgess’ vehicle, ending the pursuit and leading to the arrest of the two women.
Officers with the Edinburgh Police Department responded to the scene and collected numerous items allegedly stolen from the outlet store. Items believed to have been stolen from other stores also were found in the vehicle, Wheeles said.
Both women, who are being held without bond pending their initial appearances in Jackson Circuit Court, may face additional charges related to the theft in Bartholomew County, Wheeles said.
He also said investigators believe Wednesday’s incident may be connected to two similar incidents May 26.
The first involved a report of theft from the same Polo Ralph Lauren store in Edinburgh.
That incident ended with the arrest of Ta’neasha L. Chappell, 23, of Louisville, Kentucky, after a pursuit that began with an attempted traffic stop by Trooper Korry Clark near Seymour. The pursuit, which went through three counties and lasted more than a half-hour on I-65, ended near Exit 7 in Clark County when Chappell collided with an Indiana State Police commercial motor vehicle, police said.
More than $3,000 in suspected stolen items were found in Chappell’s vehicle after the crash.
Just prior to that incident, at approximately 11:45 a.m. May 26, Clark conducted a traffic stop on a Dodge Journey on I-65 near Seymour after it was reported the two occupants had just stolen numerous items from Polo Ralph Lauren at the Edinburgh outlet mall.
Edinburgh officers arrested the two occupants of that vehicle, Haamiyna T. Kamose, 24, and Da’miya K. Tooley, 23, both of Louisville, Kentucky, on theft charges related to the incident. They were found to be in possession of nearly $7,000 worth of stolen merchandise, state police said.
Jackson County Sheriff Rick Meyer said Thursday morning that the brush guard on the front of Elliott’s SUV saved the vehicle from a lot of damage and also possibly saved Elliott from being hurt.