BATES CO., Mo. – A police chase along U.S. Highway 71 ended in the death of two people Wednesday afternoon.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report, the chase began around 4 p.m. when Belton, Mo. police tried to arrest 26-year-old Nicholas L. Schilling, of Belton, on charges of aggravated assault.
Investigators say Schilling got into his car and began speeding down the highway.
The Cass County Sheriff’s Department then joined in the chase.
Cass County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Kevin Tieman said deputies placed stop sticks to try and flatten the car’s tires.
The chase then went into Bates County, Mo., where Schilling lost control of his vehicle while driving in southbound lanes, crossed into oncoming traffic and struck a 2008 Chevrolet Silverado head-on.
Schilling and Joe M. Nowlin, a 40-year-old Oklahoma man who was driving the Silverado, were pronounced dead at the scene.
A 14-year-old passenger in Nowlin’s car, also from Oklahoma, suffered serious injuries in the crash, according to the crash report.
Northbound U.S. Highway 71 between Butler and Passaic was closed for about three hours while crews investigated the crash.
