Bend man’s alleged two-county crime spree ends in stolen pickup crash, arrest
Two high-speed chases, two unsuccessful spike strip attempts
POWELL BUTTE, Ore. (KTVZ) – A Bend man was arrested on numerous charges Sunday after a crime spree that allegedly began in Bend, continued to Redmond and ended in Crook County, leaving behind a trail of theft and damage, Crook County sheriff’s deputies said.
The 42-year-old first allegedly stole a bike, then a Ford pickup in Bend early Sunday morning, Sgt. Brian Bottoms said. Shortly before 11 a.m., he allegedly was in a hit-and-run with property damage in Redmond, then headed into Crook County on Highway 126, as callers said he running other drivers off the road.
The man then stopped at the Powell Butte Store and stole an undisclosed amount of cash from their tip jar before heading east toward Prineville, as police searched for him.
A resident on Southwest McDonald Lane in Powell Butte reported the man drove through a fence due to a locked gate and headed off-road through other property. When he reached a ranch, the driver allegedly used the stolen pickup to ram an art studio, causing thousands of dollars in damage, to gain access inside and steal items, Bottoms said.
A Prineville police officer soon spotted the stolen pickup on Highway 126 at the Tom McCall Road roundabout, Bottoms said. That began a high-speed pursuit on Highway 126, back into the Powell Butte area.
An Oregon State Police trooper tried to use spike strips to stop the driver, but he allegedly drove at the trooper and the spike strips were unsuccessful, Bottoms said. As the driver continued toward Powell Butte, a Crook County deputy again tried to use spike strips to stop him, but he again drove at the deputy and the spike strips were unsuccessful.
The pursuit was terminated due to the risk to the public and his reckless driving, Bottoms said.
The driver was spotted by another Crook County deputy on Southwest Williams Road, where he allegedly led that deputy on another high-speed pursuit on rural county roads. But when he entered a residential area on Southwest Wampler Lane in Powell Butte, the deputy stopped the pursuit due to the area’s homes and risk to the public.
Wampler Lane is a dead-end road, and the deputy found the driver at the end of the road, where he had crashed the stolen pickup into a metal corral, causing an estimated $2,000 in damage.
The driver was taken into custody around 12:30 p.m. without further incident, checked by medics at St. Charles Prineville and booked into the Crook County Jail on charges including car theft, first- and second-degree theft, second-degree burglary, four counts each of first-degree criminal mischief and second-degree criminal trespass, two counts of felony elude, several counts of reckless driving and two counts of attempting to assault a police officer.
Bottoms said more charges are pending in Deschutes County and more are possible in Crook County from the continued investigation.
The sheriff’s office was assisted by Bend, Redmond and Prineville police, OSP, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies, Crook County Fire and Rescue and Star Towing.
