CALEDONIA, Wis. (WFRV) – A 36-year-old Illinois man is in custody following a multi-state vehicle theft and police pursuit that began in Columbia County early Thursday morning.

According to the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, the incident started just after 4:00 a.m. on July 24, when deputies received an automated 911 call reporting a crash from a cell phone near Mile Marker 108 on I-90/94/39. However, no crash was found.

About 20 minutes later, dispatchers received a call from the Days Inn hotel on Kinney Road in Caledonia, where a woman reported that an acquaintance had stolen her vehicle along with her phone and money. Authorities later determined that the automated crash alert was triggered when the suspect discarded the victim’s phone while fleeing the scene.

The suspect was iden

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