SMITHFIELD – Two Johnston County deputies were in the right place at the right time when they stopped a dangerous high-speed chase Thursday night.
At approximately 10:42 p.m. on June 12, a deputy sheriff patrolling US 70 Business near Smithfield spotted two vehicles—a Dodge Charger and a Lincoln MKZ—engaged in a prearranged speed competition. Using radar, the deputy clocked both vehicles traveling at 99 mph in a 55 mph zone.
When the deputy activated his blue lights and siren, both drivers turned off their headlights and fled at high speed. The deputy quickly caught up with the Dodge Charger and arrested its driver, 21-year-old Earnest Nash Mattocks of Powhatan Road, Clayton.
Meanwhile, a second deputy in the area stopped the Lincoln MKZ and arrested the driver, 22-year-old Devontae Da’Shane Wright of Gregtown Lane, Angier.
Both Mattocks and Wright face multiple charges including felony fleeing to elude arrest, prearranged speed competition, speeding, and reckless driving. Wright was additionally cited for driving without a license.
They are being held at the Johnston County Detention Center under $30,000 secured bonds each. Both vehicles were seized under North Carolina’s Run and Done Law.
