Two Illinois residents were arrested Wednesday after leading police on a pursuit and allegedly tossing packages of marijuana out the window along the way.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Department says it all started just after noon, when a detective with the department’s Highway Interdiction Unit conducted a traffic stop on a Dodge Durango SUV on westbound I-94 in LaPorte County. Police say the driver of the SUV had committed several traffic violations and as the detective got out of his vehicle to approach the SUV, the driver fled at a high rate of speed westbound on I-94.
According to police, the detective initiated a pursuit and saw the occupants of the SUV throwing out large bags of what appeared to be marijuana. The SUV exited I-94 at State Road 49 and the driver attempted to enter the Indiana Dunes State Park in Chesterton but the gate was closed forcing him to make a U-turn.
The occupants continued to flee and throw suspected marijuana out of the vehicle, finally stopping in Porter County on westbound U.S. 20. The driver and his passenger were taken into custody. Officers retrieved suspected marijuana from the vehicle.
The 22-year-old male driver and his passenger is an 18-year-old female, both from the Rockford, Illinois area, were transported to the Porter County Jail. Police say the suspects could face multiple criminal charges including felony resisting law enforcement and marijuana possession.
The case is still under investigation.