Tennessee suspect captured after wild chase in North Carolina mountains

MURPHY, North Carolina (WDEF) – Cherokee County Sheriff Derrick Palmer says his officers captured a man this morning wanted in both Bradley and Polk Counties.

Mason Nykolajcuyk was already on Bradley County’s Top Ten Wanted list for an evading arrest charge.

Then last night Polk County authorities pulled over a car, but it ran.

The chase ended with a crash in the Greasy Creek area, and the two occupants ran on foot.

Deputies caught Ashley Hale, but say she pulled a blade from a bracelet and cut a deputy on the arm.

The Polk County sheriff says the deputy is recovering.

But Nykolajcvyk escaped and broke into a home and stole another vehicle.

This morning, Cherokee County authorities got a BOLO on the stolen red, Dodge truck with Polk County plates.

Officers spotted it in Murphy just before noon.

They spent the next hour chasing the truck into Clay county and back.

The Sheriff says speeds exceeded 100 mph and at one point he headed up Highway 74 in the wrong direction.

Pursuing deputies say he attempted to ram other vehicles and even pedestrians.

Finally, a deputy performed a pit maneuver on the truck and it crashed on Texana Road in Murphy.

They finally took Nykolajcuyk into custody without further incident.

No one was actually injured in the chase.