Kansas City police chase ends in two arrests, three-car crash, four injuries

A Kansas City police chase ended in a three-car accident Thursday as police pursued and arrested two people suspected of armed robbery and kidnapping.

Officers attempted to pull over a black VW Jetta around US Hwy 40 and Blue Ridge Cutoff on Thursday afternoon, said Officer Alayna Gonzalez, a Kansas City Police Department spokesperson. When the driver of the Jetta did not stop, officers followed the car onto the southbound lanes of Interstate 29, Gonzalez said.

During the chase, the southbound lanes of I-29 had been brought to a halt by traffic, according to Gonzalez. The Jetta failed to brake for the stopped cars, hitting a black Dodge Journey and a blue Hyundai Santa Fe before coming to a stop, Gonzalez said.

The impact of the crash flipped the Santa Fe sideways onto the driver’s side door, Gonzalez said.

After the driver and passenger in the Jetta were taken into police custody, both suspects, along with the drivers of the Journey and Santa Fe, were taken to a hospital with minor injuries.

On average, more than three police chases take place every day across the Kansas City metro area, a Star investigation found earlier this year. Police chases often escalate to speeds over 100 miles per hour , sometimes as high as 130 miles per hour, the investigation found.

More than 320 people have been injured in police chases across the metro area in the last five years, the Star investigation found.