Hopkinsville Police arrested 20-year-old Donald Brown of Clarksville and 19-year-old Quintin Benson of Triangle, Virginia, after the pair reportedly fled from police in a stolen car on Thursday.
An officer was dispatched to Lafayette Road concerning a stolen vehicle and located it in the parking lot of a Circle K gas station. The officer attempted to block the vehicle from leaving, but the driver got around them and started to flee north on Lafayette Road.
The car turned down Country Club Lane and then onto Fort Campbell Boulevard, reaching speeds of up to 80 mph. The pursuit came to an end at the intersection of the boulevard and Eagle Way Bypass when the car struck the rear axle of a tractor-trailer.
Following the wreck, Brown and Benson fled on foot toward White’s Honda Auto Mall. As he was running, Benson reportedly tossed a loaded handgun on the ground. The on-foot pursuit ended in the parking lot of the JennieCare Urgent Clinic, where Brown was reportedly attempting to gain access to an occupied car.
Brown also reportedly had a firearm on him, and officers determined that he was the driver of the stolen vehicle while Benson was the passenger.
Brown was charged with two counts of first-degree fleeing or evading police, first-degree wanton endangerment, two counts of receiving stolen property, attempted carjacking, first-degree wanton endangerment of a police officer, possession of burglary tools, first-degree criminal mischief and resisting arrest.
Then, Benson was charged with first-degree fleeing or evading police on foot, tampering with physical evidence, first-degree wanton endangerment of a police officer and receiving stolen property.