A police chase in central Arkansas on Monday afternoon netted two arrests and about a pound-and-a-half of methamphetamine as well as a stolen gun and vehicle, authorities said.
A Benton police officer tried to stop a stolen pickup on U.S. 67 when the driver took off, leading the officer and Saline County sheriff's deputies on a pursuit onto Arkansas 229 toward Benton, according to a news release from the city's Police Department.
While crossing the Saline River Bridge, a plastic bag containing about 1.4 pounds of methamphetamine was thrown out the window along with various prescription pills, according to the department.
A Glock 43 pistol was also thrown from the truck and determined to have been stolen out of Garland County.
After a brief foot chase, 27-year-old William Wiley of Malvern and 22-year-old Faith Rowland of Hot Springs were taken into custody, police said. Arkansas State Police assisted with the arrests, the release states.
The two are charged with trafficking methamphetamine, simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms, two counts of theft by receiving, use of another person's property to facilitate a crime and fleeing on foot, as well as other drug charges, according to the release.
Wiley was also charged with fleeing by vehicle and possession of a firearm by a certain person. Both Wiley and Rowland had active warrants from multiple agencies at the time of their arrests, police said.
The investigation is ongoing, and additional charges may be filed, according to the department.
