ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – An officer is recovering after being dragged during a traffic stop Tuesday evening in north St. Louis County. Authorities arrested a teenager accused of dragging the officer on Friday.
Investigators say the officer worked with the St. Louis County Police Department, though have not disclosed any injuries. Police issued a warrant for the arrest of Jakobe Ray, 19, in the investigation.
The incident unfolded around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 9100 block of Halls Ferry Road near Jennings. An officer pulled over a driver in a 2017 Ford Fusion which police believed to be stolen from O’Fallon, Missouri.
According to court documents, an officer was attempting to arrest the driver of the vehicle and brought him to the back of the car. While that happened, a passenger was in the back of the car and reportedly climbed his way to the driver’s seat.
The officer noticed the passenger, later identified as Ray, and went toward the open driver’s seat side door. Then, the officer grabbed Ray’s shirt and attempted to pull him out of the car. Per court documents, Ray then started driving and dragged the officer around 5-10 feet.
The St. Louis County Police Department says the officer let go of the shirt to avoid getting pinned by a patrol car. The officer let go of Ray’s shirt, but collided with the patrol car during the incident. Ray rushed from the scene in the stolen vehicle after the collision.
According to court documents, the driver initially arrested in the investigation told police Ray was his cousin. Police then viewed photographs to identify Ray and issued a warrant for his arrest on Thursday.
Authorities tracked down Ray on Friday after he was at large for several days. Prosecutors have charged him with second-degree assault of a special victim. Ray is expected to be jailed on a $100,000 bond, per court records.
