3 Gang Members In Stolen Truck Wreck Into McCallie Avenue Building After Police Chase

Police said three validated gang members were in a stolen pickup truck that led police on a chase and wrecked into a building on McCallie Avenue late Monday night.

The Chattanooga Police Department was conducting stationary radar at the 3000 block of McCallie Avenue. Around 11:50 p.m., officers observed a red, four-door Toyota Tundra traveling at speeds of 62 MPH in a posted 35 MPH zone. The officer running radar pulled behind the suspect vehicle who then accelerated his speed. 

Police said the officer observed the driver continuing to travel west on McCallie Avenue, running red lights and swerving to avoid traffic.  As the officer alerted surrounding officers of the speeding vehicle, another officer advised he was nearly hit head-on by the pickup truck and he had lost sight of the speeding vehicle. 

Moments later, a wreck was reported at the 1100 block of McCallie Ave.

Officers then responded to the scene and observed the same red Toyota Tundra.  Witnesses of the wreck stated they observed the red Toyota Tundra wreck into the R.J. Rice Building.  

Two individuals, Edward Duckett and Dominique Jarrett, were found lying wounded on the scene. Both originally told officers that they were struck by the truck as they were walking down the sidewalk and then the suspects in the vehicle attempted to rob them.  

These two individuals were transported to a local hospital. Later conflicting statements and other detailed information found that the two injured individuals were actually within the fleeing red truck as willing passengers and were not hit by the vehicle or victims of an attempted robbery as they had originally stated, police said. 

Additional officers on the scene were searching the immediate area for suspects, when one officer observed a man hiding under a large passenger church van at the 1100 block of Chamberlain Avenue (two blocks from the crash scene). Officers then told the man to exit from under the van. At this time, he began running away. Officers then were able to catch Brandon Arnold and return him to the scene of the wreck. Arnold had injuries consistent with being involved in a wreck, police said. 

After checking the status of the red Toyota Tundra, it was found that the truck had been reported stolen out of Hamilton County. A search of the truck was then conducted, prior to towing. 

Inside, the truck police found crack cocaine, scales, a Sig 9mm semi-auto pistol loaded with a 15-round magazine, a Smith and Wesson .40 loaded with a 30-round magazine and four cell phones.

All three were arrested.