Two Charged After Crash In Stolen Jeep By Task Force
On March 10, 2022, at approximately 7:35 PM an officer with the Lake County Sheriff’s Department Drug Task Force – High Crime Unit was participating in a joint overnight enforcement operation targeting stolen vehicles when he observed a Jeep Grand Cherokee which failed to stop at a red light at I-65 and US-231, according to Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez Jr. The officer had been monitoring his police radio and had heard that a vehicle matching the description of the Jeep had already attempted to evade a Munster police officer also participating in the patrol.
The Lake County police officer attempted to make a traffic stop, but the vehicle entered the northbound entrance ramp to I-65 and accelerated, eventually reaching speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. The vehicle swerved to switch lanes and pass other traffic multiple times. At the US-30 overpass, the fleeing driver slowed as he approached several police vehicles positioned in an attempt to stop the vehicle. The driver attempted to go around the officers by driving the wrong way on a ramp. The Jeep sideswiped a civilian vehicle; which left the scene.
Eventually, the fleeing Jeep reentered I-65 and struck stop sticks placed by police officers. A rear tire began to deflate and fell off of the vehicle. The Jeep crashed into the median and two male occupants got out and ran westbound toward Merrillville High School. Lake County Sheriff’s Department K-9 Thanos was able to pursue and stop one of the males, Martinez said. Both men were placed into custody, medically cleared by hospital staff and transported to the Lake County Jail.
The Jeep had been reported stolen out of Chicago in November of 2021. The Massachusetts license plate on the Jeep had been reported stolen from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN in January of 2022.
26-year-old Michael Lewis Jr., of Chicago, was charged with theft, auto theft and resisting law enforcement.
32-year-old Anthony Wiley, of Richton Park, IL, was charged with 2 counts of resisting law enforcement.
Martinez thanked the officers from the Munster Police Department, Hammond Police Department, St. John Police Department, Indiana State Police, Valparaiso Police Department, Lake County Sheriff’s Department and all other law enforcement agencies with officers who participated in this patrol and helped with the arrest of these suspects. “Working together, these officers braved heavy traffic and an approaching snow storm to successfully and safely stop a dangerous driver,” Martinez said.
