Franklin County, KANSAS – According to the FCSO officials, the vehicle pursuit started in Lyon County and ended in Franklin County. This incident occurred right before 7 a.m. Saturday morning.
The 39-year-old driver, later identified as Rebecca Estrada, is now charged with Aggravated Robbery, Aggravated Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer, Possession of Methamphetamine and Felony Interference with Law Enforcement locally. More charges are pending from Lyon County.
When Estrada entered Franklin County, deputies deployed spike strips, but the suspect’s vehicle continued to travel at a slower rate of speed. The responding deputies continued to pursue the vehicle, which turned into the Love’s Travel Stop parking lot.
The 39-year-old woman then intentionally crashed her vehicle into a Sheriff’s Office vehicle, causing minor injuries to the deputy. When the vehicle finally came to a stop, the driver exited the vehicle armed with a knife. Estrada then entered an occupied tractor trailer parked next to her vehicle. The driver of the tractor trailer was able to exit quickly and was unharmed, deputies said.
The Ottawa Police Department’s Special Tactics and Rescue team deployed less lethal munitions into the tractor trailer, which forced Estrada to exit. Estrada was taken into custody at that point. Investigators believe the 39-year-old driver was actively smuggling several citizens from countries south of the United States border, to various states east of Kansas. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been notified.