Two Kansas City residents suspected of stealing a vehicle and credit cards sustained non-life threatening injuries Sunday afternoon in an Independence Police Department chase that ended near Interstate 70 and Lee’s Summit Road.
At about 3:04 p.m. Sunday, Best Buy store officials at 19110 E. 39th St. contacted the Independence Police Department regarding two 29-year-old Kansas City residents – one male, one female – who tried to make suspicious purchases, according to Tom Gentry, police department public information officer.
Gentry said an IPD officer met with a Best Buy manager and determined no reason to hold the suspects. The male and female, whose names were not released by police, seemed nervous and in a hurry to leave, Gentry said.
The suspects left in a 2006 silver GMC Envoy. An Independence police officer ran the plate number, which came back as a stolen vehicle from Lee’s Summit, Gentry said. He said the officer called additional police units to stop the vehicle, and its occupants took off at a high rate of speed eastbound on 39th Street.
The vehicle went south on Little Blue Parkway and entered eastbound I-70. They took the Woods Chapel Road exit to turn around and traveled west on I-70 back toward Independence. Gentry said they tried to switch multiple lanes at the same time another vehicle was appropriately trying to switch lanes.
The driver lost control of the vehicle and went over the guard rail north of I-70 near Lee’s Summit Road. He jumped out and started to run, though he then stopped at an officer’s request, Gentry said.
Both suspects were transported to an area hospital. Inside the vehicle were stolen items, Gentry said, and the suspicious transaction at Best Buy possibly involved gift cards that had been purchased with stolen credit cards.
According to Gentry, the male suspect has been a person of interest to several area police departments, including Kansas City and Lee’s Summit, as well as possible gang activity.
