INDIANAPOLIS – An Indianapolis woman has been arrested after leading police on a vehicle pursuit on I-65 after Indiana State Troopers were called to the scene of a minor rear-end crash southbound on I-65 at the 128-mile marker, near the Boone / Hendricks County Line.
Prior to troopers arriving the driver, 37-year-old Natasha Townsley of Indianapolis, of a tan Nissan Altima fled the crash scene southbound on I-65 before being located on I-65 southbound near Lafayette Road. The vehicle refused to stop and continued driving at a slow speed on I-65.
ISP Sergeant Chris Hanson joined the pursuit which continued at speeds of 35 miles per hour until the driver of the Altima struck the concrete median barrier twice causing the vehicle to become disabled near the 120-mile marker. It appeared the driver was the only person in the vehicle, however, she refused to exit the vehicle when ordered to do so. Members of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police SWAT Team along with members of the Indiana State Police SWAT team responded to the scene to assist. All southbound lanes were closed during the stand-off.
After almost two hours after the original call, the female exited the vehicle and was taken into custody by the SWAT Team. There were no reported injuries as a result of the stand-off, however, the female was transported to a local hospital to be checked for injuries due to the crashes she was involved in.
Townsley is suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol, she was arrested on the preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement and operating a vehicle while intoxicated.
The southbound lanes of I-65 were closed for nearly two hours during this incident, the northbound lanes were also briefly closed during the stand-off.
Troopers were assisted in this investigation by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, Indianapolis Fire Department, Indianapolis EMS, and Zores Wrecker Service.
