A 59-mile high-speed chase on I-71 ended near Lewis Center Road early Aug. 4, after Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers stopped a vehicle carrying 27 firearms stolen from an Ashland gun shop.

Martell L. Dawson, 25, and Andez T. Henry, 18, both of Columbus, were taken into custody around 2:20 a.m. in Delaware County. Each faces third-degree felony charges of failure to comply with a police officer's signal and fourth-degree felony charges of receiving stolen property, according to Ashland County Pictures.

The pursuit began after a trooper spotted a vehicle heading south on I-71 at roughly 86 mph in a 70-mph zone, with the driver talking on a cellphone. When the trooper activated lights and siren, the vehicle accelerated to approximately 120 mph, then hit speeds near 130 mph as it approached an active construction zone where workers were present, Ashland County Assistant Prosecutor Laura Stanley told the court during Thursday's bond hearing.

Troopers scrambled to clear construction workers from the roadway.

Multiple attempts to deploy stop sticks failed before the OSHP Aviation Section located the fleeing vehicle near the 135-mile marker. A successful deployment in the construction zone finally slowed the car, which crashed near the 126-mile marker. The chase passed through Ashland, Richland, Morrow and Delaware counties.

Near the wrecked vehicle, troopers found two bags: one containing 14 firearms still bearing Fin Feather Fur price tags, the other holding 13 additional guns and a taser. Court documents place the combined value of the stolen weapons at $16,938.74.

The incident began around 1:40 a.m. when an alarm company notified the Ashland County Sheriff's Office of motion at Fin Feather Fur Outfitters, 652 U.S. Route 250 East in Ashland, according to a dispatch report published by Delaware Source. Deputies arrived seven minutes later and found broken glass. A vehicle description was broadcast to surrounding agencies, leading to the OSHP stop in Delaware County.

Two Hyundai Elantras, neither registered to Dawson or Henry, were connected to the incident. One had been hot-wired with its ignition removed. The second was found destroyed in the Fin Feather Fur parking lot after its driver allegedly missed the driveway and crashed, Stanley said.

Both men appeared by video in Ashland County Common Pleas Court on Aug. 6. The court set bond at $100,000 each, rejecting the prosecution's request for $500,000 cash bonds. Bond conditions include GPS monitoring, a 9 p.m.–6 a.m. curfew, no firearms possession, no vehicle operation, no contact with each other and no going within 500 feet of Fin Feather Fur.

Stanley told the court prosecutors may seek sentences on each of the 27 firearms individually, saying Henry could face "at least 80 years in prison just on the guns." Only two felony counts have been filed against each defendant so far. Henry has prior convictions for receiving stolen property and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, Stanley said.

During his hearing, Dawson disputed the allegation that he was driving the fleeing vehicle. Attorney John Pile was appointed to represent Dawson; Attorney Donald Wick was appointed to represent Henry.

The case remains under investigation by the Ashland County Sheriff's Office and OSHP. No indictment date has been set.