MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Four people were taken into custody Thursday afternoon following a police chase on Florida’s Turnpike in Miami-Dade County.
Sky 10 was above the scene as a U-Haul van was heading north on the Turnpike, passing Northwest 41st Street, followed behind by Florida Highway Patrol troopers, Hialeah police officers and Miami-Dade police officers.
A trooper eventually struck the van near Northwest 114th Street, causing it to spin and stop.
Officers and troopers then swarmed the van to take the occupants inside into custody. Two of the occupants initially hopped on the edge of the overpass, one of whom was seen dangling off the side while being held onto by officers. He was identified by police Friday as 36-year-old Jermaal Stennett. Officers eventually pulled him up before handcuffing him.
According to police, officers were called by employees of a Kohl’s department store in Homestead regarding people who were stealing merchandise.
The suspects exited the store through a back security door, police said, and got into a U-Haul van that had been reported stolen in Broward County and had been used in several thefts.
On their way out of the parking lot, officers said the suspects rammed into a police car before fleeing north on the Turnpike.
According to one of the suspect’s arrest reports, the driver was speeding on the highway before sideswiping a silver Toyota Camry while trying to force his way between the car and a concrete median wall.
Troopers attempted three PIT maneuvers before the van was finally stopped.
Sky 10 showed two men and a woman being taken into custody, but police confirmed that four arrests were made in all.
The alleged driver has since been identified as Mekal Tarashi Wilson, 36, of Pompano Beach.
According to his arrest report, he is facing charges of fleeing and eluding police at a high speed and aggravated battery.
Stennett and two other suspects, Shuneka Gordon, 38, and Norbert Baugh, 38, are facing retail theft charges in connection with the incident at the Kohl’s in Homestead in which police say about $2,500 of merchandise was stolen along with two Kohl’s shopping carts that were used to transport the stolen goods to the van.
Homestead police said all of the suspects are from Broward County.
No major injuries have been reported as a result of any of the aforementioned incidents.
REPLAY: SKY 10 OVER POLICE CHASE