Police investigate two stolen cars, a high-speed escape and a crash in Lake County

Authorities in three Lake County jurisdictions are investigating events involving two stolen cars, a high-speed escape and a crash involving a third vehicle that began early Wednesday in Mundelein.

It started about 4:30 a.m., when Mundelein police issued a regional broadcast saying a 2020 Cadillac XT5 had been stolen and was last seen heading east on Route 120 from Route 45 in Grayslake.

About the same time, a Lake County sheriff's detective was traveling east on Route 120 near Route 21, east of Route 45, according to Lake County sheriff's Deputy Chief Chris Covelli.

The sheriff's detective was looking for the stolen vehicle when he was passed at a speed in excess of 100 miles per hour by the stolen Cadillac and a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder, Covelli said.

The sheriff's detective activated his emergency lights and siren, but he lost sight of them as they continued speeding east on Route 120.

As the sheriff's detective approached Route 120 and the off ramp to Greenleaf Street, he saw the Nissan had been involved in a crash with a 2008 BMW X5, Covelli said.

As the detective went to the BMW to check on the occupants, four people fled from the Nissan.

A sheriff's dog was used track them, but the trace ended in a parking lot just south of the crash site, where the suspects likely got into a different vehicle, Covelli said.

The driver and passenger of the BMW, both adults, were take to Lake Forest Hospital with minor injuries, he added.

The Nissan had been reported stolen out of Waukegan and is thought to be involved in the theft of the Cadillac, Covelli said.

The Cadillac was found abandoned on the 1700 block of McAree Drive in Waukegan by a sheriff's detective and is being processed by Mundelein police evidence technicians.

The Lake County sheriff's office and Waukegan and Mundelein police departments are investigating.