A high-speed chase through Festus, Herculaneum and Crystal City ended late Saturday afternoon (Dec. 3) when the 14-year-old driver of a reported stolen car crashed in the 1100 block of Crystal Heights Roads.
All three city police departments were pursuing the 2004 Mercury Sable, which had been reported stolen in St. Louis County.
One of the four occupants – all Festus teenagers – suffered minor injuries when the car left the road, plowed through a set of mailboxes and hit a utility pole, snapping the pole in two.
He was treated and released at Mercy Jefferson Hospital in Crystal City.
The passengers were 14, 17 and 18 years old. The two 14-year-olds were turned over to juvenile authorities and two older teens were released pending application for warrants, Crystal City Police Capt. Mike Pruneau said.
The chase began on Scenic Drive when Festus Police spotted the car. The driver turned east on Brandon Wallace Parkway, then north on Truman Boulevard into Herculaneum, where he turned east on Riverview Drive before heading south on Crystal Heights Road.
Pruneau said all three jurisdictions will have traffic violations to file and that he expected St. Louis County to pursue the stolen vehicle charge. The car was heavily damaged.