By Conrad Dudderar
Associate Editor
A suspect has been jailed on multiple criminal charges after a 50-mile pursuit that crossed through Yukon during morning rush hour Wednesday and ended when the truck he was driving crashed and caused a fire in Mustang.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers, Yukon and Oklahoma City police officers, and Canadian County sheriff’s deputies were all involved in the chase.
Oklahoma City’s Eddy Wayne Currey was on probation when he was arrested on his 27th birthday. In May, Currey pleaded guilty in Oklahoma County District Court and received a five-year deferred sentence for possession of a stolen vehicle in a Midwest City Police case.
Currey was booked into the Oklahoma County Jail at 3:17 p.m. Wednesday on complaints of eluding a police officer, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle collision, reckless driving, and unauthorized use of a vehicle. Bond was set at $20,000.
He faces more charges in Canadian County stemming from Wednesday’s pursuit.
The incident reportedly began about 7:45 a.m. Wednesday after Oklahoma City Police received a call of suspicious activity near SE 54th and Sunnylane. When officers tried to contact the driver in a dually pickup truck, the man fled.
OHP began its chase near westbound I-240 and May Avenue when a trooper noticed the suspect driving erratically as he passed, OHP spokeswoman Sarah Stewart said.
Currey was seen driving the truck on a flat tire when he crossed through Yukon around 8 a.m. Wednesday with many Yukon police units joining OHP in the pursuit.
“We assisted by blocking intersections,” Yukon Police Maj. John Brown said. “The person had warrants and Oklahoma City (officers) had previously been trying to stop him, so our officers assisted OHP.”
The suspect headed southbound on Cornwell and crossed over the Czech Hall Road interchange bridge speeding toward Mustang.
The chase ended near S.W. 119th and Cemetery Road when the suspect’s truck crashed into another vehicle and started a fire.
“He apparently had blown out at least one tire and was driving on a rim, which sparked and caused a fire,” Stewart said.
The fire was extinguished, and Currey was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries before being taken into custody. The other driver was checked out at the scene, according to the Oklahoma City Fire Department.
There were six crashes as a result of Currey’s truck colliding with other vehicles during Wednesday’s pursuit, according to Stewart.
“Two of those were OHP units,” she said. “There were no injuries reported from any of that activity.”
Currey has a lengthy criminal past, with previous convictions in Canadian, Cleveland and Dewey counties for driving under the influence, driving under suspension and domestic assault and battery; along with several traffic offenses.
Currey also had been charged in 2011 in Canadian County with unlawful possession of controlled dangerous substance and unlawful possession of paraphernalia; that case was dismissed with costs.
