(Estherville)– An investigation into a suspicious vehicle in Emmet county back on July 1st has resulted in the arrest of an Arizona man on multiple charges. Authorities say it stems from a pickup truck and a boat and trailer that were found parked in the 1700 block of 550th Avenue near Armstrong. A deputy found 29-year-old Benjamin Johnson of Buckeye, Arizona, asleep in the vehicle. He told the deputy he had run out of gas. Upon further investigation it was discovered the pickup had been stolen from a dealership in Goodhue county, Minnesota and that the boat and trailer were stolen from Emmetsburg. Johnson was arrested and booked into the Emmet county jail.
As the investigation continued, it was learned that Johnson was a suspect in a high-speed pursuit with shots being fired near Redwing, Minnesota and that the vehicle he had been allegedly driving in that incident was stolen from Arizona. Johnson was also a suspect in some burglaries and a church in the Redwing area. That resulted in Emmet county authorities obtaining and executing a search warrant on the pickup, which turned up items stolen in the Minnesota burglaries. Some drug paraphernalia and more than 25 grams of fentanyl was also found in the vehicle.
Johnson is being held in the Emmet county jail on two counts of theft in the 1st degree; providing false information to a peace officer, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver; possession of drug paraphernalia and no driver’s license.
Authorities say the matter remains under investigation.
