Man arrested after leading police on 115 mph pursuit with 8-year-old inside vehicle

LAKE COUNTY, Ind. — An Illinois man has been arrested after leading police on a pursuit and exceeding 100 mph before crashing into multiple vehicles in northwest Indiana early Sunday morning.

On Sunday around 3:53 a.m., ISP said a trooper observed a Chevrolet SUV traveling at an excessive speed while patrolling the area of I-80 and I-94 near Kennedy Avenue in Lake County. The trooper also saw that the Chevrolet SUV had heavy front-end damage. ISP confirmed the vehicle was traveling at 115 miles per hour.

The driver of the Chevrolet SUV, 30-year-old Endris Thomas, allegedly ignored the trooper’s instructions to pull over, which led to a pursuit. Thomas is originally from Olympia Fields, Illinois.

The pursuit spilled over onto Grant Street where ISP said Thomas crashed his Chevrolet SUV into three parked vehicles near the intersection of Lincoln and 36th Avenue. Thomas immediately exited the vehicle and attempted to flee from the troopers on foot, ISP said.

Troopers recovered two handguns that Thomas allegedly dropped while he was running from the scene of the crash, according to ISP. The pursuit eventually concluded when troopers used a stun gun to bring Thomas face-first down to the ground.

ISP said a woman and an 8-year-old child were inside the vehicle during the pursuit and subsequent crash. They did not sustain any injuries. ISP later determined that the damage troopers initially observed on Thomas’ Chevrolet SUV was the result of a hit-and-run incident that occurred a short time earlier on I-80 and I-94 near Indianapolis Boulevard.

Thomas was subsequently brought to Northlake Hospitals in Gary for medical treatment before being transported to IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis for further evaluation.

After his evaluation, Thomas was brought back to Northwest Indiana to the Lake County Jail where he is currently being held without bond since there was a hold for him on a charge from Cook County, Illinois for failure to comply with electronic ankle monitoring.

Thomas has received the following preliminary charges:

• Two counts of unlawful carrying of a handgun by prior convicted felon- level 5 Felony
• Unlawful possession of a narcotic drug- level 5 Felony
• Resisting law enforcement with a vehicle- level 6 Felony
• Three counts of resisting law enforcement- level 6 Felony
• Two counts of intimidation- Level 6 Felony
• Two counts of O.W.I.- Endangering a person- Class A Misdemeanor
• Possession of marijuana- Class B misdemeanor
• O.W.I.- Class C Misdemeanor

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 59.