Wrong-way driver in stolen car causes havoc, carjacks truck, is subdued and taken into custody
ROBBINSDALE, Minn. -- There were some dangerous moments in the North Metro last night, as a suspect allegedly stole one vehicle and carjacked another. They then drove erratically and into oncoming traffic at various times, resulting in a number of close calls.
"I saw a lot of police lights go past my window and about the fourth or fifth car, I had to get up and look," said Teri Hulke.
Hulke and her roommate Careshia Benjamin live at Ryan Creek Manor in Brooklyn Center. What they saw outside their apartment building Thursday night was the end of a police chase that had many twists and turns.
"I wasn't sure what was going on. I just saw all the squad cars. Now hearing about the car going the wrong way, it's pretty scary," said Benjamin.
According to investigators, the chase began a little after 9 p.m. as the State Patrol was attempting to stop a stolen vehicle near Highway 252 and Interstate 694.
The driver took off and traffic cameras captured much of what happened afterward. Video shows the car getting off an on-ramp in Brooklyn Center and driving the wrong way as other drivers swerve to avoid being hit. About 10 minutes later that same driver is on Interstate 94 crossing from one shoulder to another nearly clipping another car.
A few minutes after that, near another exit ramp, a squad car almost backs into the vehicle to stop it but misses and the driver gets back on Highway 100, still going the wrong way. There were even more close calls, and then a short time later, traffic cameras appear to capture the same person forcing a man out of his truck, before taking off in the truck.
The suspected carjacker and car thief was eventually stopped outside Ryan Creek Manor on Lilac Drive and 47th Avenue in Brooklyn Center. Investigators say officers fired "non-lethal" rubber foam bullets at the driver's window after the suspect refused to cooperate.
The suspect eventually surrendered and was taken to jail. According to police, a replica firearm was found in the backseat of the carjacked vehicle.
"A lot of people could have been hurt. Thankfully it was taken care of but that was definitely a lot of squad cars. I was concerned," said Benjamin.
Police did not initially pursue the stolen vehicle once it began driving erratically and going the wrong way, but they were able to follow the vehicle through traffic cameras and other means. There were no reported injuries and the investigation continues.
Shawn Franklin Sunt, 27, of Minneapolis, was charged Friday afternoon with aggravated robbery in the first degree for the incident.
