A Plain City man has been identified as the person arrested following a high speed pursuit in Pickaway County from Thursday morning.
Jeffery Allen Howard II, 34, of Pain City, was apprehended after leading sheriff’s deputies and state patrol troopers on a chase after he’d failed to pull over during a traffic stop.
The chase started at the Logan Elm Marathon Station, continued in Circleville, and then concluded by the use of stop sticks in the area of Sheppard Road.
The vehicle operated by Howard, a black Ford Fusion with Illinois plates, was found to belong to a rental company and Howard was driving it without permission. He was also found to have an active warrant out for his arrest from the police department in Hilliard.
The full release issued by the Pickaway County Sheriff's Office can be found below:
According to Sheriff Matthew O. Hafey on August 5, 2021 at around 8:56 AM the Pickaway County Sheriff’s Office received a call of a suspicious male at the Pilot Travel Centers truck stop on US 23 at Pittsburgh Road. The caller stated it was believed the male was under the influence. The vehicle was described as a black Ford Fusion with an Illinois license plate. A short time later, around 9:16 AM, a second call was received from the Logan Elm Marathon about a male in a vehicle, matching the same description as before, who had been passed out behind the wheel and was now attempting to leave.
Deputy Craig Montgomery arrived on the scene as the vehicle was pulling out onto the roadway. Deputy Montgomery initiated a traffic stop and the driver failed to stop. The pursuit went north on US23 and into the City of Circleville. Circleville Police Department joined in the pursuit which went back onto US 23 northbound.
The pursuit continued north at a high rate of speed. Troopers from the Ohio State Highway Patrol deployed Stop Sticks and were able to partially disable the vehicle. The pursuit continued north until the driver finally stopped in the area of Sheppard Road. The driver was taken into custody without further incident.
The driver, identified as Jeffery Allen Howard II, 34 of Plain City, Ohio, was taken into custody. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that the vehicle belonged to a rental company and Jeffery was not authorized to drive it. He also had an active arrest warrant from Hilliard Police Department.
Sheriff Hafey would like to thank the following agencies for their assistance today: Circleville Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, South Bloomfield Police Department and Ashville Police Department. By working together, we were able to take the driver into custody without injury to him or law enforcement as well as prevent the driver from possibly crashing into someone else down the road.