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Man wanted on a warrant in Fulton and other multiple counties arrested fleeing from officers

Tuesday, August 11, 2026 at 9:05 PM

By Staff report

A Lakeville man is behind bars thanks in part to a bystander who stepped in to help a pursuing officer.

Just before 10 p.m. Friday, the Plymouth Police Department conducted a traffic stop after observing a Mustang whose registered owner showed a suspended license.

The vehicle was slow to stop, and while the officer calling out the traffic stop and plate information, the driver, Joseph Fansler, 25, exited the vehicle and took off running. A bystander who was waiting in the Dairy Queen drive-through with his family witnessed the officer pursuing the suspect and heard him ordering the man to stop. The bystander got out of his vehicle, joined the pursuit, and helped take Fansler into custody.

Fansler was arrested on new charges of resisting arrest and driving while suspended with a prior within 10 years. He was also found to have three outstanding warrants — one each from Saint Joseph County, Starke County, and Fulton County.

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