Jefferson City man arrested after car chase

Joey Hays, left, and Michael Slack.
Joey Hays, left, and Michael Slack.

A Jefferson City man and Sedalia man face charges of tampering with a motor vehicle after a lengthy pursuit with law enforcement through two counties ended early Tuesday morning.

Joey Hays, 26, of Jefferson City, and Michael Slack, 41, of Sedalia, were each charged with one count of tampering with a motor vehicle in the first degree and are being held on $25,000 bond.

Benton County deputies were involved in the pursuit of a white Ford F-150 after discovering the vehicle allegedly left a gas station without paying for fuel early Tuesday morning, according to a news release form the Morgan County Sheriff's Office.

At 3:11 a.m. Tuesday, the Benton County Sheriff's Department told Morgan County dispatch of the pursuit and that the vehicle had stolen license plates out of Jackson.

A short time later, Benton County deputies ended the chase and were searching a wooded area on foot for the vehicle. Morgan County deputies located the truck at 3:50 a.m., traveling southbound on Missouri 135 south of Stover. The suspect vehicle fled when deputies attempted to stop it.

The truck turned down a county road, but the driver lost control and ran through a large metal fence post. It then continued to travel off the road, drove through fences and barbed wire, causing deputies to lose the vehicle.

At 6:07 a.m., deputies located it in a creek bed, but no one was inside. Deputies began a search of the area, and at 7:59 a.m., they located the two individuals from the truck. After a brief foot chase, the men were taken into custody and transported to the Morgan County Jail.

Hays had seven misdemeanor warrants out of Pettis County. Slack had a felony warrant from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and is currently on probation for theft and property damage.