In the late hours of Monday, September 4, 2023, a high-speed pursuit unfolded across multiple counties, ultimately leading to the arrest of a suspect near DeBerry, Texas. Panola County Sheriff's Office Deputies were alerted to the situation when they monitored radio traffic indicating that Harrison County Sheriff units were engaged in an active pursuit that had crossed state lines into Caddo Parish, Louisiana.
The pursuit, involving a 2007 Nissan Venza, entered Panola County at approximately 10:54 pm on Highway 79N in the vicinity of Bethany after crossing the Louisiana/Texas border. Deputy Matthew Mitchell of the Panola County Sheriff's Office joined the chase. To help bring the pursuit to a conclusion, Sergeant Quade Davis strategically placed spike strips on Highway 79N at FM 31, while a Highway Patrol Trooper set up additional spike strips near the Sabine River.
At around 11:04 pm, as the pursuit reached DeBerry, the fleeing vehicle struck the spike strips deployed by Sergeant Davis, causing three of its tires to deflate. The driver then made a right turn onto FM 31 North. Shortly thereafter, one of the remaining tires on the suspect's vehicle blew out, forcing the vehicle to come to a halt on the roadway north of County Road 3132.
Despite commands to exit the vehicle, the driver, later identified as 29-year-old Angel Barragan from Phoenix, Arizona, refused to comply. In response, Sergeant Davis utilized his TASER device. The situation escalated briefly as the suspect attempted to accelerate forward and then put the vehicle in reverse. In response to these actions, Sergeant Davis administered additional TASER cycles, eventually leading to the vehicle coming to a complete stop. The driver was then removed from the vehicle and placed under arrest, secured in handcuffs.
Angel Barragan was subsequently transported to the Harrison County Detention Center to face charges stemming from the incident, including evading arrest with a vehicle, possession of a controlled substance (CS) weighing between 1 gram and less than 4 grams, and resisting arrest, search, or transport.
