Bend shelter resident accused of stealing car is Tasered

A Dayville man staying at the Bethlehem Inn allegedly stole a car left running at the homeless shelter, tried to ram a police car, crashed, was Tasered and arrested on several charges following a brief pursuit in northwest Bend Saturday night, authorities said.

Around 9:30 p.m., an Oregon State Police trooper spotted a 1994 Toyota Celica, just moments after it was reported stolen from the Bethlehem Inn homeless shelter on North (Business) Highway 97 in Bend, troopers said.

When the trooper tried to pull the car over, the driver took off while reportedly trying to ram the patrol car, they said.

Three minutes later, the vehicle crashed in the 63000 block of OB Riley Road, where the driver fled on foot.

Troopers requested assistance from Bend police and Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies as they set up a security perimeter and looked for the suspect driver.

Around 9:41 p.m., less than 10 minutes after the incident began, a trooper found the man hiding in brush,where he attempted to fight and resist arrest. A Taser was used to take the suspect into custody, troopers said.

The suspect driver was identified as Ricky Allen Elliott, 50, of the Grant County community of Dayville.

Ellliott was taken to St. Charles-Bend for a mental health evaluation.

He was cited and released to appear in Deschutes County Circuit Court by OSP and Bend police on the following charges:

* Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle
* Felony Attempt to Elude in a Vehicle
* Misdemeanor Attempt to Elude on Foot
* Reckless Driving
* Recklessly Endangering Another Person
* Assaulting a Public Safety Officer
* Resisting Arrest
* Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree
* Misdemeanor Driving While Suspended

The car’s owner came to the scene and recovered it.

Elliott had been given shelter at the Bethlehem Inn as an emergency intake, officials there said, and he allegedly stole a car from one of the residents who left their car running unattended.

“Situations like this are sort of part and parcel of what you expect to happen when you have so many people coming into a place like this,” said Chris Clouart, the shelter’s managing director.

“This is one of their situations where things got strange, it resolved,” he added. “Hopefully that individual will get the assistance they need now.”