US: Massachusetts woman orders McDonald's in the middle of police chase, gets arrested

During a dramatic police chase, a woman in a stolen truck ended up at a McDonald's drive-thru as she tried to order lunch. On Tuesday, about 8:45 am local time, the incident occurred in Worcester, Massachusetts, roughly 42 miles west of Boston. The Worcester Police Department got a 911 report concerning a stolen pickup truck in the city's eastern section.

The stolen truck had GPS

Officers arrived on the site and spoke with the man who placed the complaint, who told them that a woman climbed into his vehicle and drove away, whom he didn't know. However, he informed the authorities that his pickup vehicle was equipped with GPS and that he could see its location.

According to police, as they approached the location of the stolen vehicle, they were stopped by another driver who informed them that their car had been damaged by the pickup truck only minutes earlier.

With that information and the GPS tracking of the car, officers were able to locate the suspect named Johanna Gardell, 38, of Worcester, Massachusetts in the stolen pickup truck only a few blocks away. But the chase did not end there.

Johanna Gardell didn't stop at first

The officers soon found the truck. They activated their blue lights, exited the cruiser, and approached the stolen vehicle, according to a statement released by the Worcester Police Department on Tuesday. As the officer approached her, she drove away. The officer re-entered his cruiser and pursued her at a low speed, but she refused to stop. On Main St. Ms Gardell proceeded to speed up and drive past red lights. For safety concerns, the officer turned off his lights and sirens and ceased following her. Gardell then encountered heavy traffic before opting to cross into the wrong lane, as well as oncoming traffic, and eventually crashed into a van carrying the stolen pickup truck.

Gardell then attempted to order lunch through a neighbouring McDonald's drive-thru, but officers were able to track her down. Then they pulled her out of the vehicle and arrested her, she resisted and struggled but eventually gave in.

Gardell is accused of failing to stop for police, leaving the scene of an accident with personal injury, assault and battery with a deadly weapon, disturbing the peace, disorderly behaviour, and driving without authority, among other things.