A Eureka Police officer appears to have stopped a burglary at a plumbing supply company after following a car down a dead-end street. At about 3 a.m. Dec. 5, the officer saw the blue and gray, four-door car turn onto West Fourth Street from Central Avenue, and since West Fourth Street is home to businesses that are not open that early in the morning, the officer followed the car down the street, Lt. Michael Werges said.
The officer pulled into a business parking lot to see if the car would come back up the street after reaching the dead end, and when the car did not drive back towards Central Avenue, the officer drove down the street with his cruiser’s lights off and pulled into the driveway of Wholesale Plumbing Supply Co., 720 W. Fourth St. He saw two people on the business’s property, and the car he followed was parked nearby with its lights off, Eureka Police reported.
When the officer turned the cruiser’s lights on, the pair ran back to the car and sped away. The officer pursued the fleeing car, which did not stop, and instead got onto Hwy. 109 and then onto eastbound I-44, the report said.
The officer continued to chase the car on I-44 but stopped the pursuit near Lewis Road because the driver was speeding and driving erratically, according to the report.
The plumbing company’s manager was contacted and said nothing appeared to be stolen. However, a pole on a gate at the business had been cut. The cost to repair the damage was estimated at about $500, the report said.
Anyone with information about the incident should call Eureka Police at 636-938-6600.