HCSO Involved in Pursuit in Downtown Chattanooga – 4 Juveniles in Custody
Hamilton County, TN – On July 24, 2024, at approximately 4:20 am, Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office deputies were advised to be on the lookout for a Hyundai Elantra with heavy rear-end damage that left an altercation at the Circle K gas station on Shallowford Road. Deputies were already looking for a stolen Elantra matching a similar description with rear-end damage that fled from deputies in the Hixson area into downtown earlier in the night. The Elantra in that incident had been involved in a pursuit after it was associated with a nearby shots-fired call reported to the Chattanooga Police Department.
Deputies located the vehicle, which had several occupants, as it turned onto North Chamberlain Road from Glass Street. As other units moved in to assist, the vehicle began running traffic lights and a pursuit ensued with the vehicle continuing to Wilcox Boulevard and Riverside Drive. The vehicle eventually came to rest at the intersection of Riverfront Parkway and Windtower Drive after the driver failed to negotiate several curbs causing significant damage to the vehicle’s tires.
As the car came to rest, four individuals immediately jumped from the vehicle and fled on foot, however, HCSO deputies and downtown Chattanooga patrol officers were able to quickly apprehend all four suspects.
The driver was found to be a 16-year-old male. A juvenile female passenger, age 15, was found to be listed as a missing person from Chattanooga with active juvenile attachments. The two remaining passengers were 13 and 16 years old. It was later determined the vehicle was not the same stolen Hyundai that fled earlier, but the ignition in this vehicle was destroyed and a USB cord was being used to operate the switch. A records check showed it had been reported stolen from an apartment complex in Chattanooga two weeks earlier.
No further details nor the names of the juveniles involved are available at this time.