TOMAHAWK, WI (WSAU-WXPR) – Two Lincoln County deputies got sprayed with something like bear spray as part of an incident that also involved a high-speed chase Thursday night.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s office says a traffic stop was made in the Tomahawk area around 10 PM because a vehicle’s license plate didn’t match the registration.
The driver gave a false name, and as the deputy was investigating, the driver sprayed him in the face with what is believed to have been either bear spray or a highly concentrated pepper spray.
The Deputy was incapacitated. Another deputy chased the vehicle onto Highway 51 south, reaching speeds of more than 100 miles per hour. All four tires were deflated by tire spikes, but the suspect kept going.
The chase ended on a dead-end in the Town of Merrill, where the vehicle became disabled in a yard. That’s when another deputy was sprayed with the substance as they were trying to take the man into custody. Eventually, he was subdued and arrested.
As the suspect was being arrested the vehicle caught fire, prompting a call to the Merrill Fire Department who put out the flames.
EMS workers were also called in to help both deputies who had been sprayed.
The suspect, a 54-year-old man from LaCrosse, was booked into the Lincoln County Jail.
