A video reportedly shows a woman in the back of a police SUV slip off her handcuffs before allegedly taking Texas officers on a 23-minute high-speed chase.
KTRE reports that the Lufkin Police Department released the footage on Tuesday. The video supposedly shows Toscha Fay Sponsler, 33, who was accused of shoplifting from Ulta and fleeing from the scene.
As officers took Sponsler back to the store, she is seen taking off her handcuffs and crawling through the partition before hopping into the driver’s seat and taking off. The Lufkin News reports that speeds topped 100 miles per hour during the chaotic chase.
“Officers saw her continually reaching for/fumbling with the officer’s shotgun, which is mechanically locked inside the vehicle,” Lufkin Police Department Media Specialist Pebsworth commented in a Saturday press release.
Police said that the pursuit ended when Sponsler took a hard turn, causing her to lose control of the SUV and come to a full stop. Officers found that Sponsler was in possession of a felony amount of methamphetamine after her arrest, according to Pebsworth.
The Lufkin News reports that the vehicle involved in Saturday’s incident was heavily damaged and likely totaled.
“We are fortunate that no one was hurt during the incident,” Lufkin Police Assistant Chief David Thomas said. “Although we haven’t had anything like this happen in the past, we will conduct an internal investigation to review the incident for training or tactical deficiencies.”
The Pollok woman is facing numerous charges, including five felony counts of escape with the threat of a deadly weapon, aggravated assault, unauthorized use of a vehicle, possession of a controlled substance, and evading arrest. She remains jailed on $18,000 bond as of Tuesday night.
[Featured Image: Lufkin Police Department/screenshot]