Suspect Arrested, 2 Officers Injured After Shawnee Police Chase

A high-speed chase ends with a suspect locked up, and two Shawnee police officers taken to a nearby hospital.

It started Sunday just before 9:00 p.m., at a Shawnee business. A 911 caller reported two vehicles were stolen from a local construction store.

Officers said when they got on scene, they found one vehicle but didn’t see anyone.

As for the second vehicle, a GMC truck, officers were able to pick-up a signal to track it down.

“We first got a call of a stolen vehicles at about 8:58 p.m. from a construction business here in town. An hour later, we found out one of the cars had a GPS in it,” said Corporal Vivian Lozano of the Shawnee Police Department.

Officers said there was no way the suspect, 32-year-old John Tooman, was going to get away.

Chase speeds reached around 100 mph, spanned across Lincoln and Pottawatomie Counties, and lasted about two hours, according to investigators.

During the pursuit, a police cruiser rolled down a gravel road and two officers were injured.  

“The police unit left the roadway on the right side, causing it to flip over,” said Corporal Lozano. “It was a field training officer with his trainee.”

The department released a statement saying that the officers’ injuries were minor, and they were in the hospital for a short-time.

The patrol car flipped near Highway 62 and 3380, but the suspect was caught later on Hazel Del Road, near McCloud.

Tooman was arrested on multiple complaints. Court records show, previous to this, he had a handful of speeding tickets and drug crimes.

“He was arrested for possession of stolen property, possession of CDS, and eluding an officer while endangering others,” said Corporal Lozano.

Tooman has been booked into the Pottawatomie County Public Safety Center.