MONROE COUNTY, Ill. — Charges have been filed after a lengthy Monday afternoon police pursuit that began in Columbia, Illinois and ended on a college campus in Union, Missouri.
The Monroe County Sheriff's Department announced the charges on Tuesday. Dustin Schlemmer, 31, of Waterloo is charged with two counts of aggravated fleeing and eluding; Maudarie Forbes, 29, of Belleville is charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance.
The sheriff's department said that at 3:14 p.m. Monday, deputies saw a car traveling northbound on Route 3 at Highway EE in Columbia. They tried to pull over the car and then began a pursuit after it didn't stop.
Police said that Forbes was originally the one driving, but she switched with Schlemmer at some point during the pursuit. Police pursued the car onto Westbound Interstate 55.
During the pursuit, police said the two threw several items suspected to be narcotics from the window and rammed a deputy's squad car twice.
The chase entered into St. Louis County, and deputies stopped pursuing as the car started driving northbound in the southbound lanes of Interstate 55 from Lindbergh Boulevard.
Neighboring agencies took over the pursuit, and the suspects attempted to ram squad cars from several agencies and struck at least one squad car, the sheriff's department said.
The pursuit ended more than 50 miles from where it began when the car crashed onto a concrete curb on the campus of East Central College in Union. Both suspects were arrested at the scene.
Schlemmer's bond was set at $500,000. He had four outstanding felony warrants for his arrest.
Forbes' bond was set at $20,000. She was also wanted for felony drug charges out of Missouri.
Possible additional charges may be filed in relation to the squad car that was struck in Missouri, the sheriff's department said.
