Crowley Police are searching for a Carencro man who allegedly led officers on a high-speed chase through Crowley that left three people injured, one critically.
If you know where Austin Lee Gary, 20, of Carencro is, please call Crowley Police at 783-1234 or Crimestoppers of Acadia Parish at 789-TIPS.
UPDATE: Gary's family called KATC and told us that he has been in contact with Crowley Police and they know where he is. He plans to speak with them tomorrow, a family member said. We reached out to Crowley Police to confirm that and they told us that Gary's father called to inform police his son has an attorney and would go to the police station tomorrow.
The incident started shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday, Crowley Police say. Some officers on patrol were flagged down about a vehicle that hit some other vehicles in a parking lot. They tried to stop the vehicle, but it took off at a high rate of speed, officers say.
Officers chased the vehicle through the city, and it damaged two houses and another vehicle before getting Highway 13, officers say. During the chase, the vehicle allegedly was traveling at mor than 120 miles per hour, they say. Then, in the 23000 block of the Crowley-Eunice Highway, the vehicle hit an embankment and went airborne, then flipped several times.
The driver, whome police have identified as Gary, got out and ran into the woods. K-9 Grimm tried to track him, but the terrain didn't help Grimm keep a scent.
One person in the vehicle was transported to a Lafayette hospital in critical condition. Two others were treated and released from hospitals with what were described by police as moderate injuries.
Gary was arrested in May 2016 and booked into the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center with operating a vehicle while intoxicated and careless driving. As soon as we can check court records to determine the outcome of that arrest, we will update this story.
