Wrong-way driver leads deputies on chase through metro-east, police say

A Fenton, Missouri, man is facing felony charges after authorities say he led deputies on a wrong-way pursuit on Illinois 3 early Thursday, briefly turning off his lights while driving through residential areas of Waterloo.

Around 4:36 a.m., a Monroe County sheriff’s deputy had just finished a business check when he saw a vehicle traveling north in the southbound lanes of Route 3 near Kaskaskia Road, according to the Sheriff’s Department. The deputy pulled onto the highway and activated his emergency lights to warn oncoming traffic and attempt a stop.

As a southbound vehicle approached in the correct lane, the suspect vehicle swerved back into the northbound lanes but did not stop, and a pursuit began, the department said in a release.

Deputies said the vehicle continued through parts of Waterloo, including residential neighborhoods. At one point, the driver allegedly turned off the headlights and taillights in an apparent effort to evade law enforcement. Deputies, assisted by Waterloo police, tried to use tire-deflation devices, but the driver avoided them.

The pursuit ended in a driveway behind a home in the 400 block of Hillcrest Drive in Waterloo, where both the driver and a passenger were taken into custody without further incident, according to the release.

A search of the vehicle turned up suspected narcotics and a BB gun designed to closely resemble a real firearm, deputies said.

The driver was identified as Matthew R. Higgins, 34, of Fenton, Missouri. Higgins was taken to a local hospital after telling officers he had ingested a large quantity of suspected narcotics, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

Monroe County State’s Attorney Ryan Webb charged Higgins with aggravated fleeing and eluding and possession of methamphetamine.

Higgins also had an active warrant from the Missouri Department of Corrections for a parole violation stemming from a first-degree assault conviction, a violent felony in Missouri, according to court records.

The passenger, Stephen Smith, 48, also of Fenton, was charged with possession of methamphetamine.

Both men remained in custody Thursday at the Monroe County Jail.

After the incident, the Sheriff’s Department learned the same vehicle had previously fled from the Missouri State Highway Patrol during the overnight hours in Missouri before entering Illinois, according to the release.