Driver arrested after hit-and-run, exhaustive search ; Search: Man located hiding under a vehicle

Authorities said they arrested a Topeka man not far from Topeka High School late Tuesday, hours after they think he was involved as a driver in a hit-and-run injury accident, then ran from a deputy near the school.

Law enforcement officers Tuesday afternoon had surrounded the school, evacuated it and searched the building, then ended the search after finding no one.

But sheriff's Lt. Danny Lotridge said Lashawn L. Mady, 19, of Topeka, was arrested in that area Tuesday evening.

Lotridge said that after a Unified School District 501 police officer was notified about 7:05 p.m. of a suspicious person near Topeka High, that officer and a Topeka police officer located Mady near 900 S.W. Topeka Blvd. and identified him as the person who earlier fled from officers near the school.

Lotridge wrote in an email: "The Topeka Police Officer found him hiding underneath a car before he was taken into custody (one of the residents at the apartment complex used the intercom system to notify the officer where Mr. Mady was hiding)."

Mady, who initially gave police a false name, was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Shawnee County Jail on outstanding Shawnee County warrants charging him with a probation violation and interference with a law enforcement officer, Lotridge said.

Lotridge said the series of events involved began about six hours earlier when a deputy driving an unmarked car contacted dispatchers shortly after 1 p.m. asking for assistance to stop a Chevy Traverse, which was being driven erratically near S.W. 5th and Topeka Boulevard. The deputy followed the Traverse as it was driven east on S.W. 5th, south on S.W. Harrison, west on S.W. 8th and north on Topeka Boulevard.

While turning onto S.W. Topeka Boulevard, the deputy saw the Traverse had been involved in a traffic accident at S.W. 6th and Topeka, Lotridge said.

The other driver -- Andrew Cook, 26, of Topeka -- said the crash occurred about 10 minutes after he bought a black 1995 Chevy Corsica, which he was driving to an agent's office to buy insurance.

Cook said he was southbound on Topeka Boulevard in the right lane, preparing to turn west onto S.W. 6th, when the northbound Traverse crossed into the southbound lanes and struck his car. Cook said he suffered burns when his air bag activated, though he didn't need medical treatment.

A Topeka police officer at the scene said the Traverse continued north, apparently went across the lawns of several businesses, then hit a planter and came to rest at the entrance to El Mezcal, 511 S.W. Topeka Blvd.

Lotridge said witnesses indicated they saw four black men in their late teens or early 20s run from the Traverse. One was found nearby, detained, questioned and released, he said. Two others, both passengers, remained at large late Tuesday.

About 1:34 p.m., Lotridge said, a deputy located a man matching the driver's description on foot near Topeka High School, 800 S.W. 10th.

As the deputy drove in that man's direction, he ran away along the north side of the high school building, Lotridge said.

Kansas Highway Patrol troopers in a helicopter flying above also saw the man running along the north side of the school, Lotridge said.

"As the helicopter turned around, the subject was no longer visible," he said. "Ground units arrived in the area within seconds and found an open door in a loading dock area. Though no officers saw the subject enter the school, it was reasoned it was likely the subject entered through the open door and was possibly inside Topeka High School."

Officers surrounded the school, evacuated about 20 employees, then searched the school but didn't find anyone, Lotridge said.

During the search, police could be seen standing guard outside each entrance.

A police officer slowly rode his motorcycle across the front lawn toward the east side of the school. Another officer exited his car, then quickly strapped on a bullet-proof vest.

Employees were allowed to return to work about 3:15 p.m., Lotridge said.

The Traverse was a rental vehicle but wasn't stolen, police said at the crash scene.

The sheriff's office continues to investigate the accident, Lotridge said.