Full Notification

Cass County Sheriff Richard J. Behnke advised that his Office responded to a single vehicle crash on Old 205 near Cassopolis Rd in Mason Township.  

Around midnight on October 22, deputies were notified by their dispatch that Nappanee Indiana Police were chasing a stolen vehicle from Elkhart County into Cass County.  Nappanee Police terminated their pursuit when they lost sight of the stolen car.  Shortly thereafter, a resident on Old 205 notified deputies that a vehicle had crashed into a tree.

When deputies arrived on scene they found the passenger, 49-year-old Adrian Smith of Elkhart, deceased from his injuries.  The driver had fled on foot.  A K-9 unit from the Michigan State Police responded, and after a short track, took a male subject into custody.  The identity of the suspect driver will be released after his arraignment.

Smith was not wearing his seat belt at the time of the crash.  Deputies believe that drugs were a factor in the crash.  Edwardsburg Police, The Michigan State Police, Nappanee Police, and SEPSA Fire Authority assisted the Sheriff's Office at the scene.  The incident remains under investigation.