LAKE CRYSTAL, Minn. – Charges are pending after a 100-mile-per-hour chase in southern Minnesota.
The Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office says its deputies and Lake Crystal police officers were called to the 500 block of West Blue Earth Street just before 6:30 am Friday for a possible domestic assault. A citizen reported a seemingly injured woman and a man sitting in a gray Hyundai Santa Fe in the area.
The man was identified as Fernando Gutierrez, 45 of the Mankato Area, and deputies tried to make contact with him. The Sheriff’s Office says Gutierrez drove away and that started a pursuit on county roads and highways in western Blue Earth County and eastern Watonwan County, reaching speeds of about 100 mph.
The Sheriff’s Office says Gutierrez lost control of his car and crashed into a guardrail on Highway 30 about five miles west of Highway 169. He allegedly actively resisted arrest but was taken into custody just before 7:30 am Friday.
The Santa Fe reportedly sustained significant damage and at least one squad car received minor damage during the chase. Gutierrez was taken to a local hospital for treatment of apparently minor injuries. No one else was harmed in this incident.
The Watonwan County Sheriff’s Office, Faribault County Sheriff’s Office, MN State Patrol, Amboy Fire Department, and Winnebago Ambulance assisted with this matter.
The Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office says Gutierrez will be held in the county Jail pending a court appearance on charges related to the pursuit and warrant for an outstanding felony warrant for motor vehicle theft and domestic assault.
