Bend PD: Fugitive ate meth after chase, capture

A 31-year-old transient wanted on a parole violation refused to pull over for Bend police Friday, sparking a pursuit that ended with him running, being Tasered – and swallowing meth, leaving him hospitalized in critical condition, officials said.

Shortly before 8 a.m., a Bend police sergeant spotted Dana Lee Johnson at the wheel of a 1985 BMW at NE Wells Acres Road and Canyon Park Road, said Sgt. Liz Lawrence. A woman later identified as Yvette Garcia-Riley, 40, of Bend, was his passenger.

When the sergeant tried to stop Johnson’s car, he continued on for several blocks before stopping, jumping out and running, Lawrence said. The sergeant and a Deschutes County sheriff’s detective who had been in the area gave chase and caught Johnson a short distance away.

A Taser was deployed and Johnson was taken into custody, but he ate some methamphetamine just before his arrest, and Lawrence said his condition began to deteriorate at the scene.

Bend Fire medics took Johnson to St. Charles Bend, where he was listed in critical condition Friday evening, according to a nursing supervisor.

While officers chased Johnson, Garcia-Riley got into the driver’s seat and fled, but was stopped by a responding officer, Lawrence said.

Garcia-Riley was cited for interfering with a police officer, while Johnson was issued a citation for attempting to elude a police officer.