Police chase truck that rammed unmanned Independence patrol car

A suspected stolen pickup truck rammed an unmanned Independence patrol car Tuesday morning before leading police on a high-speed chase that ended in Kansas City, Kan.

Police were searching for a man who ditched the truck in a ravine behind a house in the 3800 block of Lloyd Street in Kansas City, Kan. He fled on foot into a wooded area behind the house, which is near Fisher Park.

The chase began about 9:05 a.m. in Independence. Kansas City police officers in an unmarked car notified Independence police that they were following a truck that was believed to have been stolen. The driver stopped at the Missouri Probation and Parole Office, near 42nd Street and Noland Road.

Independence police responded and attempted to block the truck from leaving. The truck rammed an Independence patrol car and a parked car as the driver attempted to escape, said Officer Tom Gentry, a spokesman for the Independence Police Department.

Independence police pursued the truck as it fled into Kansas City and then across Interstate 70 into Kansas City, Kan. Other police departments joined the pursuit.

The driver eventually headed south on Interstate 635 and then north on Interstate 35, exiting at Southwest Boulevard. Officers said the truck’s speed exceeded 90 mph at times.

The driver went through a residential area and into a backyard before ditching the truck. Police said that as the man fled, he lost a shoe. He also had removed his shirt.

No one was injured during the pursuit.

Police have identified the driver. He faces possible charges of criminal damage to property, fleeing police and possession of a stolen vehicle, Gentry said.

This story was originally published September 1, 2015 at 10:22 AM with the headline "Police chase truck that rammed unmanned Independence patrol car."