Fugitive driving stolen car arrested after C.O. pursuit
MADRAS, Ore. (KTVZ) – A Crook County sheriff’s deputy spotted an erratic driver early Wednesday on the way to work, and that led to a pursuit into Terrebonne and beyond, a guns-drawn traffic stop and arrest of a transient fugitive driving a car stolen out of southern Oregon, deputies said.
The deputy was driving his patrol car to start his shift shortly after 5 a.m. when he spotted the 1994 Geo Metro heading south and driving erratically near milepost 111, Undersheriff James Savage said.
The deputy called for help from Oregon State Police and Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies, Savage said. He tried to pull over the car, but the driver later identified as Travis Ray Buenafe, 29, refused to stop and continued driving south in a reckless manner, Savage said.
Amid light traffic, the car was pursued into Terrebonne, where it turned off Highway 97 for a short period, onto 11th Street, then got back on the highway and headed south, turning onto Northwest Odem Avenue, where it was pinned in by the deputy.
A high-risk traffic stop was conducted with the help of an off-duty Warm Springs Police officer who also was on his way to work and heard the pursuit, Savage said.
Buenafe, alone in the car, was taken to the Jefferson County Jail in Madras, since the pursuit began in Jefferson County. The undersheriff said they learned the car was stolen from Phoenix, Oregon, and Buenafe was wanted by the state Parole Board and Josephine County.
Buenafe was held without bail on the Parole Board warrant and also charged with unlawful use of a motor vehicle, attempt to elude, reckless driving and DUII
