Two people are in custody following a pursuit from the Pine Ridge Reservation that ended in Chadron Tuesday afternoon.
Police Chief Rick Hickstein says the Dawes County Communication Center received a call from the OST Department of Public Safety around 1:42 p.m. advising they had an officer in pursuit of a gray colored Chevrolet pickup, with a suspect inside believed to have been involved in a shooting days prior in South Dakota. Information was also obtained the suspect may be armed with a shotgun and the vehicle he was in may be stolen.
The dispatch center monitored the pursuit via radio, 911 calls and communication from OST Department of Public Safety. Local law enforcement set up on the east side of Chadron to assess what was happening and provide assistance if warranted.
Chadron officers observed the suspect vehicle and the OST Department of Public Safety Officer enter into Chadron on Highway 20 on the east edge of town. The suspect vehicle was able to get out of sight of the officers and no pursuit was initiated due to the circumstances.
As a search was being conducted to find the pickup, a citizen called advising a vehicle matching the suspect vehicle, had parked in their driveway on the 200 block of Cedar Street and the male and female who had been inside ran from it.
As officers set up a perimeter, schools in the area were notified of the situation and possible threat so they could react appropriately with their established guidelines for school safety.
A short while later, two suspects were located on the 100 block of Main Street, matching the description of the suspects who had left the gray Chevrolet pickup.
The Nebraska State Patrol was able to detain and place into custody one male subject involved in the pursuit. Chadron Police contacted 21 year old Candace Lessert, her into custody for possession of methamphetamine.
The Chadron Police Department was assisted by the Dawes County Sheriff’s Office and the Nebraska State Patrol with this investigation.
