Two suspects, including a seven-time convicted felon accused of embezzling $100,000 from the Cowlitz Tribe, were arrested following a multi-agency pursuit in Thurston County on Thursday.
The suspect, who has not been identified by law enforcement, was turned over to the Cowlitz Tribal Police for booking.
Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders reported that he was en route to a candlelight vigil for Karen Bodine in Rochester when he was informed that a Ram 1500 TRK blew through a red light at a busy intersection and fled from a deputy who had tried to stop him.
At one point, Sanders said, the truck was approaching two school buses on 183rd Avenue at a high rate of speed. The pursuit was terminated as deputies slowed down near the school buses, and visual of the truck was lost.
Sanders and deputies attempted to relocate the truck as it continued deeper into unincorporated Thurston County.
The original pursuing deputy relocated the suspect vehicle on a one-lane private driveway, where they went head-on at each other before the driver fled through a field and crashed, according to Sanders.
Washington State Patrol’s airplane Smokey arrived overhead and located both the truck and the fleeing driver within a few seconds.
Deputies located and detained the passenger walking through someone’s yard, according to Sanders.
K9 Igo responded to the scene and a K9 track ensued through harsh terrain down into a creek bed and back up to a trail on the other side. The State Patrol airplane was able to guide deputies toward the suspect in real time, Sanders said. The suspect fled back down the steep hillside to the creek bed, where K9 Igo caught up to him. He was detained without further incident.
“I obtained a search warrant for the truck and recovered Cowlitz Tribe property, a zip loc bag full of meth, an unserialized AR15, an unserialized handgun, and drug paraphernalia,” Sanders wrote on social media. “Great job by all of the involved agencies, which included TCSO, Cowlitz Tribal Police, WSP Aviation, Chehalis Tribal Police, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, and TCOMM911.”
