DPS: Two charged after evading troopers; drugs, firearm later found

The Texas Department of Public Safety released information about a Sunday morning pursuit across several counties that led to two arrests. 

According to a news release, at about 10 a.m., a DPS Highway Patrol Trooper attempted to stop a gray Toyota Camry for a traffic violation on eastbound Interstate 40 near Wildorado. The driver refused to stop and continued driving east. The pursuit continued until it approached a construction zone, where the trooper terminated it out of safety concerns, authorities said.

The search for the vehicle continued, and the gray Camry was later found abandoned near a business in Canyon. Multiple troopers arrived on the scene to assist, and after processing the vehicle and viewing video footage from a nearby business, law enforcement was able to identify the female passenger as 26-year-old Nikia Ezell of Orlando, Florida. Video footage showed Ezell and an unidentified male driver loading luggage from the Camry into a gray Chevrolet Tahoe. Both then left the scene in the Tahoe with an unknown female driver.

A statewide alert was issued for the Tahoe and suspects. At about 10 p.m., a Kaufman County Sheriff’s Deputy advised troopers he stopped the suspect vehicle and located 10 pounds of marijuana and a handgun inside the luggage. The male suspect was later identified as 28-year-old Dejuane Lowe of Orlando, Florida.

Ezell and Lowe were taken into custody and charged with felony possession of marijuana and felony possession of a firearm. They were taken to the Kaufman County Jail. Both Ezell and Lowe face charges of felony evading arrest in a motor vehicle.

The unidentified female driver of the Tahoe was identified as a rideshare service driver, and she was released from the scene.