“The people of our towns were in immediate danger”

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PURSUIT RAN THROUGH THREE COUNTIES 

JUVENILE SMUGGLERS JAILED AFTER SUV SPIKED IN PLEASANTON

Two youths have been remanded into custody in Atascosa County after they led officers on a high-speed pursuit that began near Encinal on Saturday evening, October 15.

Agencies involved in the case included the Encinal Police Department, the La Salle County Sheriff’s Office, the Texas Highway Patrol, the US Border Patrol, and those of Dilley, Frio and Atascosa counties.

According to reports on the incident, the teens were traveling in a white sport utility vehicle that sped from officers in Encinal and traveled north on IH-35 before taking a Cotulla exit and heading at a high rate of speed to downtown.

At the same time, the sheriff’s office, City Hall and other civic groups were hosting the annual ‘Trunk or Treat’ children’s festival at Veterans Park in Cotulla, and deputies said they became immediately aware of the danger to pedestrians.

“We were notified of the approaching vehicle and the pursuit underway,” La Salle County Sheriff’s Lieutenant Homar Olivarez said, “and we heard it coming. We took measures to get the kids away from the road, to make sure no one was in the path of this ongoing chase.

“Cotulla was not the only place where the danger was very real,” the lieutenant added. “The suspects drove back onto the interstate and took exits in Gardendale and Dilley in their continuing attempts to evade capture.

“The people of our towns were in immediate danger from this high-speed criminal attempt to evade capture,” the lieutenant said.

The pursuit passed through Dilley and onto Hwy 85 East, headed towards Charlotte, the lieutenant said.

Officers believe the youths were transporting undocumented immigrants in the SUV, and reports indicate that an undetermined number of those passengers left the vehicle and fled on foot in Charlotte.

Speeding northeast from Charlotte, the teens continued towards Pleasanton, where the SUV ran over tire-deflating spikes that had been placed in their path, and the vehicle came to a halt.

“What we and all of the other agencies involved are dealing with here is indicative of the persistence and desperation among suspected smugglers and others with criminal intent to evade law enforcement,” Olivarez said.