The Nebraska State patrol arrested a man following an incident Sunday afternoon at the I-80 Speedway near Greenwood. The patrol says around 1:30 they were notified that a pickup had driven through a fence adjacent to I-80 near mile marker 417.
Troopers arrived and learned that the man went to the Cubby’s gas station at the Greenwood I-80 interchange. The man was reported to be armed with a hammer and had threatened to carjack a motorist.
Pilots in the NSP helicopter saw the man attempting to gain access to several vehicles around I-80 Speedway, across Highway 63 from the gas station. The pilots directed troopers and Cass County sheriff’s deputies to the area where a trooper was able to locate the man. The patrol says he then ran across the track and into the grandstand area on the west side of the track.
A trooper eventually caught up to the man and began speaking with him. During that time the trooper saw him attempting to harm himself with a shard of glass. The man ignored the trooper’s commands to drop the glass and the trooper deployed his taser. The man was then taken into custody without further incident.
The unidentified man has been placed in emergency protective custody at the Lancaster County Mental Health Crisis Center. Once released from protective care, he will be booked into Cass County Jail for attempted robbery, flight to avoid arrest and vandalism.