Wisconsin multi-county police chase; several vehicles stolen, man arrested

LINCOLN COUNTY, Wis. - An Antigo man was arrested after authorities say he stole several vehicles and led police on a chase through several counties in northern Wisconsin, before crashing in Merrill.

Chase and search

Sequence of Events:

According to the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, on Thursday morning, Oct. 8, patrol deputies were advised of a stolen vehicle that had been involved in a high-speed pursuit in Shawano, Menominee, and Langlade counties earlier in the day.

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The suspect had reportedly abandoned a stolen vehicle before stealing another one. That stolen vehicle was reportedly last known to be heading toward Lincoln County on State Highway 64 from Antigo. The driver had been identified as a local to Antigo, and was known to have warrants for his arrest. Deputies monitored the area, including monitoring Flock Safety for any indication that the vehicle may have entered Lincoln County. There was no indication the vehicle went into Lincoln County, and it was not found at that time.

A short time later, that stolen vehicle was found abandoned in the northwest part of Langlade County. From there, the suspect stole another vehicle.

Later in the morning, Lincoln County Sheriff's Deputies were made aware that the suspect had at some point entered Minocqua, and he stole about $1,000 cash from yet another vehicle. The identifying information for the current stolen vehicle was entered into Flock Safety.

Just before 12:30 p.m. Lincoln County Sheriff's Deputies got a Flock Safety alert that the stolen vehicle had in fact entered Lincoln County southbound on US Highway 51 from US Highway 8. Deputies located the vehicle still southbound on US Highway 51 near Irma, where they attempted to stop it.

Crash in Merrill

Sequence of Events:

Once again, the suspect failed to stop, resulting in another high-speed pursuit. This pursuit went south to County Highway K north of Merrill, where an Officer from the Merrill Police Department was able to successfully use spike strips to deflate two of the tires. From there the vehicle continued southbound into the City of Merrill and down several city streets. Upon turning onto E. Main Street, the suspect vehicle struck the vehicle of an innocent driver. At that point, a deputy used a Pursuit Intervention Technique (P.I.T.) to stop the vehicle on E. Main Street. The suspect ran away from the vehicle, but was arrested after a short foot pursuit.

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The driver of the other vehicle had minor injuries and declined medical attention on scene. As a result of the incident, a deputy suffered a significant hand injury requiring surgery.

Booked into jail

What To Know:

The person arrested in this case is 44-year-old Joshua Micke of Antigo. He was booked into the Lincoln County Jail on the following charges:

• Fleeing/Eluding an Officer Causing Bodily Harm (Felony)
• Operating Vehicle Without Owner's Consent (Felony)
• Resisting /Obstructing an Officer Causing Substantial Bodily Harm (Felony)
• 1st-Degree Recklessly Endangering Safety (Felony)
• Hit-and-Run Causing Injury (Felony)
• Operating After Revocation - OWI Related (Misdemeanor)
• Cause Bodily Harm By Reckless Driving (Misdemeanor)

He also had a Langlade County warrant and a Department of Corrections (D.O.C.) probation/parole warrant.

Merrill Police Department assisted in the pursuit and is handling the crash reports involving the innocent motorist and the sheriff's office squad car.

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