A stolen Nissan Maxima rammed into a Homeland Security Investigations vehicle as an agent was stepping out during a Memphis traffic stop Tuesday, kicking off a chase that ended with four men fleeing the car and running into a house on Britton Street. Three of them — Tavion Davis, Jackaylon Johnson and Da’shawn Ward — are now facing felony theft and evading arrest charges, while a fourth man was detained but has not been arrested.
The chase began after a Memphis man reported his 2023 Nissan Maxima stolen from his driveway overnight, according to Action News 5. Detectives tracked the car across the city to the area near Mt. Moriah Road Extended and Sonora Drive, where Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers and Homeland Security Investigations agents tried a traffic stop using blue lights, per the outlet's account of police records.
That's when, according to those records, the Maxima struck the Homeland Security vehicle as the agent was getting out, then kept going. An MPD aviation unit picked up the pursuit and tracked the car weaving recklessly through traffic north on Mt. Moriah before it exited onto Hollywood Street and finally stopped near Nedra Avenue and Britton Street.
Four Men Bail Out, Run Into a House
Four men jumped out of the Maxima and ran into a nearby home on Britton Street, the station's report states. Officers and agents surrounded the house and later cleared it, detaining all four men inside — though only three were ultimately arrested. The Nissan's owner told authorities that a black handgun was in the car's glovebox, the same account notes.
Davis, Johnson and Ward were each charged with theft of property valued at $10,000 or more but less than $60,000 and evading arrest. Johnson was held on a $50,000 bond, Davis on a $20,000 bond, and Ward — held on the steepest bond of the three — on $100,000, per the same report.
A Multi-Agency Response Built for This
The joint response involving Memphis Police, Homeland Security agents, ATF agents, Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers and an MPD air unit reflects a task-force model federal authorities built specifically for Memphis. In September 2025, federal officials established the Memphis Safe Task Force, bringing together Homeland Security Investigations, ATF, THP and Memphis Police for joint operations targeting street and violent crime. In a separate case, the Memphis Police Department described ATF adopting the firearms portion of an investigation for federal prosecution.
Under Tennessee Code § 39-14-105, theft of property valued at $10,000 or more but less than $60,000 is a Class C felony, per Justia Law. The three men also face evading-arrest charges for the pursuit. State law imposes a mandatory minimum of at least 180 days of confinement when the stolen property is a firearm, according to FindLaw.
A Prior Missing-Person Report
Court and public records reviewed separately show two of the men had run-ins with law enforcement before Tuesday's arrest. Davis, then 18, was arrested by Memphis Police in September 2024 after a pursuit involving a stolen 2018 Mercedes-Benz S550 taken during an armed robbery at a Riverdale Road Walgreens, where he was charged with theft and evading arrest.
Ward had previously been reported missing from Jackson, Tennessee, beginning March 17, 2025, in a missing-teen community alert Hoodline published the following October.
Another Tennessee Pursuit
A man stole and overturned a THP cruiser during a Tennessee pursuit.
It remains unclear whether federal prosecutors will bring firearm charges in the Britton Street case related to the handgun the Nissan's owner said was in the glovebox, how extensive the damage was to the Homeland Security vehicle, or whether the fourth man detained at the Britton Street house will face charges of his own.
