Man leads police in high-speed chase with outfit changes

Nov 4, 2019

Joshua Jenkins, 34, of Fall River, was arrested by Wareham Police on Sunday, Nov. 3, following an alleged high speed chase, numerous moving vehicle violations, and shoplifting. 

According to the prosecutor in Wareham District Court on Monday morning, Officer Calib Larue saw Jenkins’s white Nissan run a red light on Cranberry Highway at about 10 a.m., and followed him onto Tobey Road and into the Walmart parking lot, where Jenkins rear-ended a vehicle before turning around the center island and leaving the parking lot without stopping for a stop sign. Jenkins hit another vehicle on Tobey Road and kept going. Larue also noticed that Jenkins was not wearing a seatbelt.

The chase continued onto Cranberry Highway, and Jenkins allegedly blew another red light, hit a third vehicle, and reached speeds topping 100 miles per hour. He continued driving towards the center of Wareham and turned onto Gibbs Avenue.

At some point, officers lost sight of Jenkins and were canvassing when passers-by directed them behind Browne’s Package Store on Rte 6. Behind the store, officers found the white Nissan empty with the driver’s side door open. 

The officers heard noise coming from the edge of the reservoir behind the store, and went to investigate. There they found Jenkins allegedly attempting to cover himself with brush, and ordered him to show his hands and stop. Jenkins allegedly yelled “I ain’t going back to jail,” before jumping into the reservoir and swimming towards Hathaway Street.

With the help of a Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office K-9, officers tracked Jenkins to behind the Aubuchon Hardware, and then located him on security footage moving toward Shaw’s. 

The manager of Shaw’s informed an officer that Jenkins had allegedly stolen a Patriots jersey, priced at $34.99, and put it on before going to Rite Aid.

There, Jenkins purchased a new outfit — a blue windbreaker, black socks, and blue sweatpants — along with a phone and phone card. He made the purchase with a wet $100 bill. 

Larue spotted Jenkins fleeing into Shaw’s and, with the help of other officers, cut him off and handcuffed him at 11:45 a.m. In his report, Larue wrote that the arrest in Shaw’s frightened many of the customers who got “on the ground with their hands up, sobbing.”

Jenkins is facing 14 charges stemming from the incident: three counts of assault and battery with a deadly weapon, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, reckless operation of a motor vehicle, shoplifting, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace, failure to stop for police, failure to stop for a light, a marked lanes violation, failure to use turn signal, failure to wear a seatbelt, speeding, and operating with a suspended driver’s license, subsequent offense.

Jenkins’s defense attorney had some issues with the charges, saying that the report did not clearly explain the charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. She also disputed the charge of shoplifting, as the report contains testimony from a clerk who reported being paid with wet cash.

The attorney also said that Jenkins had a number of bruises on his lower body, which he said came from being kicked and punched by officers. 

Bail was revoked. Jenkins’s next appearance in court is scheduled for Nov. 27.