Suspected impaired drug dealer busted after leading deputies on I-5 chase
MARYSVILLE, Wash. -- A suspected drug dealer was arrested after leading Snohomish County Sheriff's deputies on a high-speed chase along I-5 then crashing in Marysville Wednesday morning.
A deputy attempted to pull over the 33-year old driver around 2:30 a.m. on I-5 North near 4th Street in Marysville for suspicion of DUI, said Courtney O'Keefe with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office. The deputy also had reason to believe the driver was wanted for assault in an incident last week where he smashed into a deputy's patrol car while trying to run from police.
But as this deputy tried to pull the driver over, the driver instead sped away and a chase ensued. O'Keefe said the driver reached speeds of 60-100 mph during the 5-mile chase as it worked its way around Marysville streets.
Deputies were able to place spike strips at 67th Ave NE and 88th Street NE, which popped the driver's side front tire. The driver returned to I-5 heading south, but deputies then used a PIT maneuver to stop the car, and the car spun off the road and into a grassy area before rolling over.
The man driving the car was arrested and then processed for suspicion of DUI, according to O'Keefe. He didn't suffer any obvious injuries in the crash, but was then taken to a local hospital to be checked out. A woman riding with him was also taken to a local hospital to be checked for minor injuries, O'Keefe said.
Deputies searched the car and found a trove of drugs, including 621.5 fentanyl pills, 36.7 grams of meth and a large amount of cash, investigators said.
The suspect was eventually booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of DUI, eluding police, drug possession with intent to sell and third degree assault stemming from last week's incident involving ramming the deputy's patrol car.
