A Illinois man who fled from an early morning crash Wednesday on Interstate 65 near Seymour was captured in the city later in the day.
Thomas Paul Hall, 39, of Decatur was arrested by Seymour Police Department officers on preliminary misdemeanor charges of resisting law enforcement, leaving the scene of an accident and operating while never receiving a driver’s license and a Level 4 felony charge of possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon.
According to a news release from Jackson County Sheriff’s Deparment Officer Kevin Settle, Hall’s arrest stems from a wreck reported by multiple motorists at 5:23 a.m. Wednesday on Interstate 65 near the 45-mile-marker south of Seymour.
One caller said a man had crawled out of the vehicle that had rolled over and was requesting transportation away from the scene because he didn’t have a license, said Settle, who initially investigated the wreck.
Settle said when he arrived at the scene, he found a Chevrolet truck with North Carolina license plates on its passenger side.
The driver was not found at the scene by Settle, who was assisted by county officers Billy Dishman and Zach Elliott.
Settle reported he spotted a semiautomatic handgun inside the truck.
During the investigation, police were able to determined Hall was the driver of the truck and he didn’t have a license, Settle said.
Police also learned Hall was on parole in Illinois and is a convicted felon.
At 6:31 p.m. Wednesday, the Seymour Police Department received a call about a man matching the description of Hall asking to use the phone at a local gas station in the 1600 block of East Tipton Street.
City Officer Cody Teltow responded to the area, but Hall fled after an attempt by the officer to identify him. Hall was captured a short time later and was booked into the Jackson County Jail in Brownstown at 7:39 p.m. Wednesday.
A Level 4 felony has a two- to 12-year prison sentence upon conviction with a six-year advisory sentence.
Also assisting in the case were troopers with the Indiana State Police Sellersburg Post, Brownstown Police Department officers and personnel with Jackson County Emergency Medical Services and Crothersville-Vernon Township Volunteer Fire Department.