Arrest Leads to Suicide Attempt

A Belle man remained in critical condition at University Hospital in Columbia after a grisly pursuit played out Monday afternoon. The drama played out before horrified neighbors.Joseph Thompson, Jr. and Susan Koelling both ran from a Highway Patrol trooper trying to serve a warrant, while using knives to slice their throats.MSHP troopers tell ABC 17 News Thompson and Koelling had “precursors to a meth lab” in their vehicle during a traffic stop in Osage County Saturday night. They were taken into custody and released, pending the arrest warrant to be served Monday.When troopers arrived at the car impound, Koelling took off running and Thompson jumped behind the wheel and drove away. A trooper was able to wrestle Koelling to the ground before she could do much harm to herself. She was taken to University Hospital by ambulance.Thompson was stopped not far away by Linn police and Osage County Sheriffs deputies, but his condition was far worse. Law enforcement described a violent scene, with Thompson bleeding profusely from his neck. He was airlifted to University Hospital.The couple had allegedly made a pact that they would rather die together than go to prison.Stay with ABC 17 News and abc17news.com for the latest as this story develops.