2 charged after 50-mile pursuit in western Minnesota, police say
MONTEVIDEO, Minn. — Law enforcement officials in western Minnesota say two people are in custody after leading police on a 50-mile pursuit Tuesday.
According to Montevideo police, officers at around 9:45 a.m. attempted to stop a vehicle occupied by a person with an active felony warrant. The driver refused to stop and a pursuit began.
Police said the pursuit went from Chippewa County to Lac Qui Parle County before the motorist entered a cornstalk field and the vehicle started a fire. The pursuit spanned 50 miles and ended near Lac Qui Parle Lake after an hour and 10 minutes.
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The two occupants in the vehicle, a 36-year-old man and 34-year-old woman both of Granite Falls, were arrested and taken to jail.
On Thursday, the Chippewa County Attorney's Office confirmed that charges were filed in the pursuit. The woman faces felony charges of aiding an offender to avoid arrest and fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle.
The man, identified as Sean Labatte, faces one felony charge of aiding an offender to avoid arrest. Labatte has an active warrant for felony threats of violence, with the woman who was charged as the victim.
Both charges have potential maximum sentences of three years in prison.