Chase suspects identified, including Mitchell teen

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LAKE ANDES — Authorities have released the names of the two people arrested Thursday following a lengthy high-speed pursuit through Douglas and Charles Mix counties.

Jacob Abdo, 18, and Michael Clark, 27, both of Mitchell, are being held in Charles Mix County following an hour-and-15-minute chase that began when Douglas County Deputy Sgt. Jason Babl and Chief Deputy Gene Niehus attempted to stop a vehicle allegedly traveling 90 mph in a 55 mph zone in northwest Douglas County. The vehicle did not stop and a chase ensued.

The suspects’ vehicle sped off, with speeds sometimes exceeding 100 mph, and eventually turned west onto U.S. Highway 18, then south on U.S. Highway 281 before again heading west on U.S. Highway 18 toward Ravinia.

About 45 minutes into the chase, law enforcement deployed road spikes, which punctured and deflated the vehicle’s front driver’s side tire. Despite the damage, the vehicle continued on for about another 30 minutes before running out of gas on a dirt road southwest of Ravinia. The two men did not resist arrest after the chase ended, Babl said Thursday in an interview with The Daily Republic.

Officers from the Charles Mix County Sheriff’s Office, Wagner Police Department and the Bureau of Indian Affairs all participated in the chase.

Once the vehicle was stopped, authorities say numerous stolen items were found inside. They are, according to a release issued Friday by the Charles Mix County Sheriff’s Office, an unspecified amount of money, a 9 mm pistol, a computer, an audio/visual projector and jewelry. The items were allegedly stolen from two residences in Howard earlier on the day of the chase. The vehicle itself was allegedly stolen Wednesday evening in Mitchell, the release says.

Numerous charges are expected to be filed as early as Monday, Babl said, as law enforcement finish compiling reports on the incident.

Tags: high speed, lake andes, news, updates, crime, chase, howard, region