Additional details have been released after an Alabama man accused of stealing a car in West Point led a Clay County Sheriff’s deputy on a high-speed chase that ended when the suspect collided with a truck in Oktibbeha County.
West Point Police Chief Avery Cook said 28-year-old Jonathan Cosby of Haleyville, Alabama stole a florist van near the Alabama town on Saturday, before coming to Clay County some time that night.
Cook said Cosby then stole gasoline from a service station on Highway 45 before police spotted him near Magnolia Rehabilitation Services . Cosby then wrecked the van in a field, before escaping pursuit by running into the nearby woods at about 3 a.m. Sunday morning.
Later that morning, Cook said Cosby stole the Nissan Passenger from the Dollar General store on Highway 45 Alternate after the driver had gone into the store, leaving the vehicle running.
Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott said the deputy spotted Cosby going 90-100 mph, which prompted the pursuit at around 10 a.m.
The deputy followed Cosby onto Highway 82 headed toward Starkville when the stolen Nissan turned onto Hickory Grove Road North. Cosby then collided with a Chevrolet pickup truck traveling west as Cosby crossed Highway 182 in Oktibbeha County.
The driver of the pickup was transported to OCH Regional Medical Center with “moderate injuries,” while Cosby was airlifted to University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
While Cosby’s injuries were considered “serious,” Mississippi Highway Patrol Troop G spokesman Master Sgt. Criss Turnipseed said the injuries were not life-threatening.
Scott said his office will likely charge Cosby with felony fleeing, while Cook and Turnipseed both said WPPD and MHP would bring their own charges once Cosby is released from the hospital.