Crime & Safety

Burnsville Teen Missing After Thursday Morning Car Chase

The 16-year-old, one of two runaways, jumped into a lake in Dassel after a deputy chased the vehicle they were driving to a dead end.

BURNSVILLE, MN — A Burnsville teen is missing after they eluded a Meeker County Sheriff's deputy during an early Thursday morning chase.

The teen was one of two 16-year-old runaways, the sheriff's office told WCCO, who were allegedly seen speeding through Dassel in a stolen vehicle at around 1 a.m. Thursday on U.S. Highway 12.

A deputy tried to stop the vehicle, but after pursuing it to a dead end at Spring Lake Park in Dassel, its driver and passenger fled on foot, the Litchfield Independent Review reported.

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Though the passenger, from Pine City, remained on land and eventually returned to the deputy, the driver jumped into the lake.

The deputy lost sight of the driver due to heavy fog, the Independent Review reported, and Dassel Fire and Rescue was unable to find them after searching the lake.

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The driver was spotted a few hours later in another vehicle heading east on U.S. Highway 12, Bring Me the News reported. That vehicle was reported stolen from the north side of Spring Lake.

Authorities did not identify the driver or the passenger.

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