Fond du Lac County Squad Damaged In Pursuit

Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office deputies pursued a vehicle at over 100 miles per hour for 15 miles early Saturday morning, February 4, 2023.

Around 2:50 AM, an officer with the sheriff’s department conducted a traffic stop on Johnson Street near Pioneer Road in the City of Fond du Lac because the license plates did not match the vehicle and were also suspended.

Upon making contact with the driver of the vehicle, the deputy developed suspicion that the he was impaired by alcohol.

The officer also realized that the driver had given a false name, saying he was his brother to avoid detection due to having warrants for his arrest.

The deputy was able to positively identify the driver as a 35 year old male from Oshkosh who had active arrest warrants. He was also on probation for vehicle operator fleeing/eluding an officer.

The driver refused to exit his vehicle and left the scene of the traffic stop without being released, traveling at a high rate of speed eastbound on Johnson Street.

The chase traversed the City of Fond du Lac on Johnson Street and continued east on Highway 23.

As the driver approached the intersection with Hillview Road his vehicle entered the turn lane to go north but was unable to maintain control and went into the center median.

The driver then began to travel eastbound in the westbound lanes at which time the deputy was able to conduct a pit maneuver on the vehicle which sent it into the north side ditch.

The driver exited the vehicle and started running away but the officer was able to use a taser on the suspect and took him into custody.

The man is being charged with felony fleeing/eluding, two counts of resisting/obstructing, 2nd degree reckless endanger safety, and bail jumping for an open criminal case in which he was charged with resisting/obstructing. He is also receiving citations for OWI 2nd offense, operating after revocation, violation of license restrictions for failure to install an ignition interlock device, and speeding.

The deputy sustained possible injuries as the result of his airbags deploying while making contact with the suspect vehicle.

The suspect complained of injuries and was medically cleared at a local hospital.

The cruiser operated by the deputy was significantly damaged as was the suspect vehicle. The Wisconsin State Patrol is conducting the collision investigation between the two vehicles.