Police have arrested a Bellevue man who crashed into a liquor store, stole a bottle of bourbon, and fled from police, causing all northbound lanes of the Big Mac Bridge to be closed for a short time on Wednesday, according to the Bellevue Police Department.
Bellevue police were dispatched to an alarm at One Stop Liquors around 3:30 a.m. When they arrived, officers found heavy damage to the building.
According to a social media post from Bellevue police, surveillance video showed McClean Morris driving a large sedan into the front of the building, getting out of the car, and going in to steal a bottle of cinnamon bourbon. Morris then sat outside, drinking the bourbon, before leaving the scene.
Fort Thomas, Dayton and Newport police were able to identify Morris from his prior arrest. They went to Morris’s address, where officers discovered he was not home. While speaking with neighbors, the Facebook post states that Morris was seen on Lafayette Avenue near Division Street in a stolen vehicle.
When officers arrived, they told Morris to exit the car, but he refused. Morris drove off, ramming into a Newport police cruiser and reversing the vehicle into other cars before driving towards several officers, forcing them to take cover, according to the social media post.
Morris then drove through a neighborhood on the sidewalk before heading north on Washington. Police chased Morris onto the Big Mac Bridge, where Morris stopped the car and shouted profanities at officers, continuing to refuse to exit the vehicle. Police had to close all northbound lanes of the bridge.
Multiple police cars were seen on the bridge around 5:30 a.m. behind a black sedan. The bridge reopened about 15 minutes after the shutdown when Morris fled again.
Stop sticks were used, but Morris drove away at a slow speed.
The Cincinnati Police Department stopped Morris on East 3rd Street and Broadway, and police from Northern Kentucky arrested him.
The black sedan Morris was driving was reported stolen in Cincinnati.
Morris is facing several charges, including burglary, criminal mischief, wanton endangerment of a police officer and civilian, fleeing and evading police, receiving stolen property, and leaving the scene of an accident.