SALINE COUNTY -Just before 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, a Saline County Sheriff’s Deputy went to an address near the intersection of N. 5th Street and E. Stimmel Road in Salina to attempt service of a Saline County District Court warrant, according to a media release.

When the deputy arrived, a white 2008 Mazda CX7 SUV was moving on the property and once the driver of the SUV saw the deputy, the driver fled the property westbound on Stimmel Road towards N. 9th Street in the SUV with the deputy in pursuit.

The Saline County Deputy was able to get the Kansas tag number on the SUV and the vehicle had been reported as stolen in Salina to the Salina Police Department on July 11.

The driver refused to stop for the deputy and the pursuit continued northbound on N. 9th Street and then eastbound on I-70 HWY at speeds above 100 MPH. The driver of the stolen vehicle, exited I-70 HWY at N. Simpson Road by driving south down an embankment, back west through a KDOT barbed wire fence and onto N. Simpson Road. The vehicle then continued southbound on N. Simpson Road.

Numerous Salina County Sheriff’s Office Deputies and Kansas Highway Patrol Troopers had responded to the call and were in the I-70 HWY and N. Simpson Road area. The SUV was quickly located in the 3200 block of N. Simpson Road where it had been abandoned.

A check of the vehicle was made by a deputy and trooper and it was discovered an eight year old male, still in the vehicle, was a passenger in the stolen vehicle during the pursuit.

It was learned the suspect driver had fled westbound into a tree line and field. KHP K-9 Troopers were also in the area and deployed their K-9s for tracking and a KHP plane also assisted with attempting to locate the suspect driver.

During the investigation, it was learned the suspect driver was Allen Marlow, 22, Salina who had several active warrants and is listed on the July 2016 CrimeStoppers 48 Most Wanted.

At or around 4:19 PM, Saline County Deputies located Marlow in a row of hay bales in the 3400 block of N. Simpson Road and he was taken into custody.

Allen Marlow was arrested at the site on a Saline County District Court felony warrant and two Salina Municipal Court warrants. Marlow also faces possible charges of Felony Possession of Stolen Property, Felony Aggravated Endangering a Child, Felony Obstruction, Felony Possession of Methamphetamine, two counts of Criminal Damage to Property, Possession of Paraphernalia, Driving While Revoked, Fail to Stop at Stop Sign, two counts of Fail to Signal Turning Movement and Speeding of Maximum Limits.
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SALINA, Kan. (AP) — Law enforcement officers are searching for a man involved in a police chase who fled and left a child behind in the car.

Saline County Sheriff Glen Kochanowski says the chase began Thursday morning when a deputy tried to stop a car in north Salina. The ensuing chase reached speeds up to 110 mph before the vehicle went off the interstate and eventually stopped. Two men jumped out and ran into a nearby field, leaving a young boy in the car.

One of the men was quickly arrested but the other has eluded police. The child was not hurt and has been returned to his mother.

The search near where the vehicle stopped has ended but Kochanowski says officers know the man’s identity.

By MEGAN HART

Almost nine out of every 10 Kansans and Missourians who selected health insurance on the federal online marketplace paid for at least the first month of their coverage this year, offering one bit of stability in the sometimes-turbulent marketplace.

PAOLA, Kan. (AP) — A church pastor and longtime eastern Kansas homeless shelter director has been charged with sexually molesting a child.

The Kansas City Star reports that 57-year-old Jay Preston was charged Monday in Miami County with felony aggravated indecent liberties with a child. He’s jailed on $500,000 bond. It wasn’t immediately known if he has an attorney.

He had served as pastor of Grace Revolution Church of the Nazarene and president and CEO of My Father’s House in Paola. My Father’s House said in a statement that he has been placed on unpaid leave and that the charity will continue operating. It serves residents of Miami, Linn and four additional rural counties.

Miami County Attorney Elizabeth Sweeney-Reeder says the charges stem from an incident earlier this month in rural Miami County.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Strong winds sweeping across Kansas have overturned a tractor-trailer, blown down a fireworks tent, toppled trees and caused electrical outages.

The National Weather Service reported hurricane-force winds of more than 80 mph Thursday in the Wichita area. The storms followed another round of severe weather Wednesday.

In Sedgwick County, emergency crews rescued the tractor-trailer driver who became pinned in his rig when it overturned on Kansas 42.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2008 Sterling Semi driven by Michael S. Kennedy, 56, Wichita, was blown off Kansas 42 at South Hoover Road just after 8:30 a.m. Kennedy was  transported to St. Francis Medical Center.

Further west in Goddard, a fireworks tent was blown down along U.S. 54.

The winds also blew down numerous power poles. Westar Energy reported more than 2,000 customers without power in Sedgwick County. The earlier round of storms left several thousand without power in in Ellis and Russell counties in western Kansas.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a Wichita, Kansas-area sheriff’s investigator was briefly hospitalized after being overcome with an unknown substance in a department evidence room.

The Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department says the detective was processing evidence as part of a drug investigation when he opened a plastic bag and was overcome by a strong smell. The investigator then experienced sweating, slurred speech and dizziness.

The department says it’s unclear what the substance is and that it’s being tested. But the federal Drug Enforcement Administration has warned law enforcement agencies about fentanyl, a synthetic opioid said to be 50 times more powerful than heroin.