OSP outlines charges in chase, Metolius standoff
An attempted traffic stop south of Madras Sunday morning led to a police chase into Metolius, where a man and woman ditched the car, ran and hid in a home. An Oregon State Police SWAT team ended the over two-hour standoff with the pair’s arrest, troopers said.
The sequence of events began around 7 a.m., when an OSP trooper tried to stop the driver of a 1992 Honda Civic four-door for running a stop sign south of Madras, troopers said.
The driver, identified by OSP late Sunday as Brent Waldorf, 23, of Madras, refused to pull over, leading to a pursuit through a field and on several streets in the Metolius area, troopers said.
About 10 minutes later, Waldorf and his female passenger, identified Monday as Challis Sharei Heath, 23, of Warm Springs, abandoned the car in an alley and ran.
OSP, with the help of Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies and Warm Springs police, tracked the pair to a home in the 500 block of Washington Street in Metolius.
Contact with the homeowners confirmed the fleeing suspects were in the home, trying to hide.
Troopers said Waldorf was believed to be wanted on outstanding warrants and was thought to be possibly armed.
OSP activated SWAT personnel from Central Oregon and the Willamette Valley.
After some of the SWAT personnel arrived on scene, they made entry and took both people into custody around 10:15 a.m.
While inside, SWAT officers learned the suspects set a fire in the kitchen; troopers said it was put out with fire extinguishers.
Waldorf was lodged in the Jefferson County jail on felony warrants out of Wasco and Jefferson counties, as well as new charges of felony attempt to elude in a vehicle, misdemeanor attempt to elude on foot, reckless driving and first-degree arson.
Heath also was lodged in the Madras jail, facing charges of first-degree arson, reckless driving and felony and misdemeanor attempt to elude in a vehicle and on foot.
Waldorf made the news nearly two years ago, in July 2012, when he was arrested after officers said he led several police agencies on a pursuit of a stolen motorcycle from the Terrebonne area to Metolius, Culver and Madras at speeds that topped 90 mph at times.
