GALLIPOLIS — A police cruiser was involved in a crash late on Thursday night in Gallipolis following a multi-county pursuit that originated in Henderson, W.Va.
Reportedly, a police car operated by an officer with Gallipolis Police Department who was aiding in the pursuit was struck by the suspect’s black Ford pickup truck just prior to 10 p.m. on Thursday night.
According to officers at the scene, the pursuit began at approximately 9:38 p.m. in Henderson in the Redmond Ridge area after the vehicle failed to stop for a Henderson, W.Va., Police Officer who was attempting to stop the driver for a speeding violation. The pursuit continued across the Silver Memorial Bridge and into Gallia County where the driver of the suspect vehicle fled onto Ohio 160 and back into the City of Gallipolis.
Once inside the municipality, the vehicle traveled south down Fourth Avenue and failed to stop after its left front tire was deflated from “stop sticks” that were deployed by a Gallipolis police officer in the 100 block of Fourth Avenue.
The vehicle then turned eastbound on Vine Street (Ohio 7) and rammed a police cruiser at intersection of Third Avenue and Vine Street. The pursuit continued north along First Avenue and ended at the intersection of Court Street near the Gallipolis City Park where the fleeing vehicle stopped and the driver exited the pickup to surrender to intervening police officers.
According to the Gallipolis Police Department, Jonathan E. Beaver, 31, of Huntington, W.Va., was arrested for felony fleeing and eluding and the felonious assault of a police officer.
The two female passengers who were present in the suspect’s vehicle at the time of the incident were questioned and released at the scene. Their names have not been released.
No injuries have been reported.
Law enforcement later discovered that Beaver had a warrant out for his arrest from Mason County, W.Va., for his alleged involvement in operating a clandestine drug lab.
Beaver had been previously been connected to a recent meth lab bust in Gallipolis Ferry, W.Va.
As reported in The Point Pleasant Register, the Mason County Sheriff’s Office had obtained warrants for Beaver’s arrest for allegedly operating a clandestine laboratory following a meth bust at a vacant home on Crab Creek Road on September 2.
Agencies involved in Thursday’s pursuit were the West Virginia State Police, the Mason County Sheriff’s Office, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the Gallipolis Police Department and the Gallia County Sheriff’s Office.
Beaver is currently being held in the Gallia County Jail.
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