Here's why the FBI says the suspect in last week's downtown chase ran from police
John Lohden Jr. said he could purchase stolen guns as a police informant. In reality, he sold the firearms to authorities as part of a scheme, an FBI agent says.
New information is coming out about the man who led police on a chase through downtown Louisville last week.
A spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) confirmed with WHAS11 News that John E. Lohden Jr. was arrested on Aug. 18 following the downtown chase.
According to a federal complaint filed in July, Lohden was assisting the FBI and Louisville Metro Police as an informant in a joint investigation into stolen weapons being sold in Louisville.
On Jan. 6, 2022 Lohden informed authorities he knew someone in possession of stolen guns and said he would be able to purchase the weapons for police, the complaint says.
“At the direction of law enforcement, Lohden purportedly placed an order for a shotgun, rifle and ballistic body armor,” Special Agent Zachary Harrison said.
Harrison says the purchase was set to take place in the parking lot of the Jefferson Mall where Lohden planned to buy the stolen items for $2,000 cash.
Lohden drove to the mall parking lot, equipped with police surveillance equipment, and purchased the guns and vest from a man in a green pickup truck, who he said he knew as “Brent.”
After the transaction, he then met with authorities and gave police the firearms as planned, but the complaint says police knew something was off.
Harrison says police recovered a short-barreled assault rifle, shotgun, tactical vest, as well as two other AR-15 rifles.
The FBI agent said the two additional AR-15s caused concern among officers as “this was a highly unlikely event to occur based on our experience.”
'Nothing major, make a few hundred' Agent says Lohden planned scheme to scam FBI
Harrison wrote in the complaint that as authorities continued their investigation, they were able to find the man who sold the guns to Lohden, later identified as Brent Harrod, and interview him.
Harrod told investigators that Lohden was a friend from church who texted him asking if he wanted to “make a few hundred.”
When the two met in Louisville, Harrod says Lohden placed what looked like gun bags in his pickup truck and told him to meet at the Jefferson Mall in 30 minutes.
Harrod says he did as Lohden instructed and met him in the mall's parking lot and Lohden took the bags out of his truck and gave him an envelope with cash.
Lohden had told him prior to the exchange to take the cash and drop it off in the glove box of a white Maserati in the parking lot of a known address, which Harrod says he did. Lohden also told Harrod he could take $300 as payment.
Harrod gave investigators screenshots of texts between the two that seemed to corroborate the interview with police.
According to Harrod, Lohden was “very security conscious” and told him to communicate through an app called “Signal,” which deletes texts after they are read.
“Lohden orchestrated the whole transaction above to make it look like he was acting as the purchaser in a controlled buy of firearms on behalf of law enforcement,” Harrison said. “When in reality Lohden sold the firearms to law enforcement.”
'Lohden sold the firearms to law enforcement'
The federal complaint was filed in July, since then police had been looking for Lohden to arrest him for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
According to Harrison, the charge stems from Lohden being in possession of the stolen firearms despite him not being able to be in possession of any weapons following two federal convictions in 2021 and 2007.
Based on the evidence gathered, Harrison said there was enough probable cause to arrest Lohden, but police weren't able to find him for another few months.
Police eventually found Lohden on Aug. 18, which resulted in the downtown Louisville police chase.
Details surrounding the chase are limited, however LMPD confirmed they were assisting the FBI in arresting a wanted subject.
An FBI spokesperson confirmed that wanted subject was Lohden.
According to LMPD, after officers boxed Lohden in with their vehicles, he struck at least three police cruisers and several other cars, including the safety arm of a Jefferson County Public School bus.
After striking the vehicles, Lohden stepped out of his car and began running from officers while carrying a little boy. He was arrested and the child was taken to the hospital.
Lohden is currently being held at the Oldham County Detention Center on unknown federal charges.
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