A 36-year-old man was booked into the Ada County Jail around 2 a.m. Friday, Sept. 28 following an hourslong search for the man accused of stealing a pickup and fleeing police Thursday, according to Ada County Sheriff’s spokesman Patrick Orr.
Travis Tennant of Boise is accused of stealing a pickup from a business on Franklin Road and driving through a fence across Falcon Crest Golf Club in Kuna. A police chase began about 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, according to the sheriff’s office.
The suspect had access to firearms, according to law enforcement, classifying him as possibly dangerous.
Meridian police chased the man as he drove south, sometimes at 100 mph, veering through some farm fields. At one point the suspect hit an Ada County Sheriff’s Office vehicle near Cole and Kuna Mora roads. One officer was inside the vehicle that was struck, according to Kuna police chief Jon McDaniel, but was unharmed. The suspect also ran a Meridian police vehicle off the road.
The search perimeter expanded about a mile and a half in several directions. Police searched multiple homes and notified 20 to 30 other homeowners of the situation. According to police the rough terrain of sage brush and corn fields complicated the search that lasted nearly five hours. Spikes were put out in multiple places.
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Meridian Police Sgt. Terry Hodges said the owner of the pickup and a friend saw the suspect steal the pickup. They tried to stop the suspect, but reportedly had to dodge when the suspect drove straight at them.
Police found the vehicle in a field around Cole Road near the railroad tracks.
Meridian police arrested Tennant in the area of West Franklin and South Meridian roads, according to the department’s arrest log.
Tennant was charged with felony eluding an officer, grand theft, aggravated assault and assault upon an officer.