News Release

WHITLEY COUNTY — An early morning pursuit starting in Whitley County shortly after 3 a.m. Sunday, June 15 resulted in the arrest of a Warsaw man.

Jose Miguel Garrido

Jose Miguel Garrido, 20, Warsaw, turned his lights off and sped up when an Indiana State Police SWAT member on US 30 near CR 600E in Whitley County headed to Elkhart County for an emergency call. The state trooper noticed this behavior while on his emergency run.

Since the state trooper was headed to another call, he was not looking to stop Garrido’s gray Nissan 370. However, it appears when Garrido saw the red and blue lights he began to run from the trooper. The trooper, identifying the dangerous speed and lack of lights, then began pursuing Garrido.

As the pursuit continued west, other troopers and officers from other agencies arrived to assist. Another trooper was able to successfully deploy a tire deflation device, also known as Stop Sticks, in an attempt to safely end the pursuit.

Although the tire deflation device was successful, Garrido continued west on US 30 into Kosciusko County where he crashed his Nissan near the intersection of US 30 and Old Road 30.

Garrido then ran from the crash but was taken into custody after a short foot pursuit. There were no other vehicles involved in the crash.

Garrido denied medical treatment and was arrested on several charges in Whitley and Kosciusko Counties.

The charges include resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, a level 6 felony; resisting law enforcement, a class A misdemeanor; forgery — possession or production or distribution of false government identification, a class A misdemeanor; leaving the scene of a crash, a class B misdemeanor; possession of marijuana, a class B misdemeanor; possession of paraphernalia, a class C misdemeanor; and reckless driving, a class C misdemeanor.

He was held in the Whitley County Jail on $41,000 surety bond.

The Indiana State Police Troopers were assisted by the Whitley County Sheriff’s Department, the Columbia City Police Department and the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office.