Boone County Sheriff’s Office: Driver of stolen vehicle in crash remains at large

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Boone County sheriff's deputies were searching Friday for the driver of a stolen vehicle after a chase ended in a crash on Range Line Street and Blue Ridge Road, sending multiple people to the hospital Thursday night.

The chase started around 11 p.m. Thursday night and ended after the stolen vehicle ran a red light on Range Line, colliding with two other cars.

Two women were transported to University Hospital with serious injuries, according to the Columbia Fire Department.

One woman taken to the hospital was a passenger in the stolen car. The Boone County Sheriff's Office later identified her as Annie Ledbetter, 40, of Columbia. The sheriff's office said deputies found what they think was methamphetamine on Ledbetter.

The driver left and went north on foot. Deputies on scene used dogs to attempt to track the driver.

The sheriff's office said the chase started near Interstate 70 and Providence Road when a deputy's license plate reader identified a Ford Explorer as stolen. The deputy followed the vehicle onto Range Line Street and tried to stop it but hte driver kept going, according to the sheriff's office. The crash happened about a mile away.

Trey Cook, a witness at the scene, described the serious crash and said, "It (the car) probably went about 50 yards through the intersection and then further north on Rangeline before it stopped, and caught on fire."

The sheriff's office said while it had not made an arrest, investigators think they know the identity of the driver involved in the chase and crash.