Phone alert came from car theft, shots fired, car chase that ended near Exit 11

Update, 12:20 p.m.: The alert went only to cell phones in the vicinity of the search, using emergency alert system technology.

Previously:

CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Many people in Montgomery County received a Public Safety Alert on their phones late Saturday night about a possibly armed teenager.

The alert was in response to reports of gunfire at Ramblewood Apartments, followed by a pursuit, wreck and arrest on Drake Road, just east of Exit 11, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.

At about 11:30 p.m. Saturday, dispatch received a shots fired call at Ramblewood Apartments, off of Highway 48/13 just south of Clarksville, according to MCSO Lt. Mark Wojnarek.

A vehicle description, of a gray Nissan hatchback, was provided. Deputies spotted the vehicle on the Bypass and tried to make a traffic stop near Vista Lane, according to incident reports provided to Clarksville Now. The vehicle fled from the deputy.

After a pursuit that continued onto Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway, the suspect driver lost control and crashed, with the Nissan going into a “barrel roll” on Drake Road, according to the reports.

There were three juvenile occupants. One was injured and LifeFlight was called in. Another stayed at the crash scene. The teenage driver fled into the wood line, and information was that he had a firearm.

“The decision was made by on-scene commanders to use the alert in case someone spotted a person running around in the area or attempted to knock at a door. It was the most effective way to make a rapid alert to the area,” Wojnarek told Clarksville Now.

K9 deputies tracked the driver and were able to apprehend him.

The Nissan had been reported stolen out of Clarksville.