The search for two suspects who led the South Dakota Highway Patrol on a high-speed pursuit that went through Mitchell on Monday is still ongoing, authorities say.
The high-speed pursuit broke out at approximately 3 p.m. on Monday, after a state Highway Patrol officer attempted to stop a red SUV for a speeding violation on Interstate 90. According to Tony Mangan, public information officer for the South Dakota Highway Patrol, authorities pursued the Toyota 4RAV vehicle into Mitchell until it approached north Main Street near the Mitchell Middle School.
After the vehicle reached speeds of around 80 mph through the residential parts of northeast Mitchell, including Burr and Main streets, Mangan said the state Highway Patrol officers terminated the pursuit due to "public safety concerns." At the time of the pursuit, three Mitchell Public Schools on the north side of the city, including Gertie Belle Roger Elementary, had just been let out for the day at 3:15 p.m. on Monday.
Shortly after the high-speed pursuit was terminated, Mangan said the authorities with the Mitchell Police Department located the red SUV in an alley, where it was abandoned by the two suspects. According to an alert from the Mitchell Department of Public Safety, the two suspects involved in the incident were last seen in the 1000 block of Third and Fourth avenues. The red vehicle that the suspects abandoned in the alley was reportedly stolen.
Local authorities have identified one of the suspects as a an African American male wearing a black sweater and baseball cap, while the other suspect is reportedly a white female with long light-colored hair. It's unknown whether the suspects are armed and dangerous. Authorities cautioned Mitchell residents to lock their vehicles and homes.
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Authorities continued their search for the suspects through Monday night and into Tuesday, but they had yet to find and arrest the suspects, as of Tuesday evening.
