Facebook Post Leads To Wild Chase In Pott. County

News 9 has learned more about a wild chase in Pottawatomie County that put several lives in danger including children at a daycare, and investigators are giving credit to a post on Facebook for leading them to the suspect.

Dispatch: "Pottawatomie County Citizens Dispatch."

Caller: "I was on Facebook earlier, and I saw a picture of a blue Chevy pickup that was reported stolen."

Caller: "I see the pickup right now. I'm actually looking at this truck."

Caller: "The truck is headed eastbound on Hardesty right now."

A deputy was soon close behind, but the driver, Nicholas Weedn, was not stopping.

"He took off, and it was on,” Lt. Travis Sullivan said.

News 9 obtained radio traffic from the pursuit.

Deputy: "He's definitely running from me. He is just now blowing through the stop sign."

Deputy: "I got speeds in excess of 80 miles an hour."

Deputy: "Speeds now in excess of 100 miles per hour."

He led authorities on about a 20 minute chase that kept getting faster with each mile.

"It actually at one point went through a daycare parking lot. It's usually pretty busy with people coming in and out getting their kids,” Sullivan said. "Pretty dangerous right there."

Weedn ended up outside of town. He ran through a gate and a fence along the way. Two other people were inside the truck with him, and at one point one of them rolled out of the truck while it was moving, but Weedn kept going.

The next day police finally caught up with him and the other passenger here at a house in Tecumseh.

"They finally come to door and gave themselves up,” Sullivan said.

Weedn told authorities he ditched the stolen and tried to set it on fire. He piled wood inside the cab and lit paper underneath it. However, his plan to burn the vehicle did not work.

"He shut the doors and smothered out the fire,” Sullivan said.

Weedn is in police custody. Fortunately, nobody was seriously hurt.

"It could have been pretty bad,” Sullivan said.

The passenger who jumped out of the truck during the pursuit was taken to the hospital where he was treated and released.