Pierce County Sheriff Deputies stayed busy over the long weekend. Here are only a few calls we handled:
On February 15, at approximately 1:00pm, a Gig Harbor officer was helping with the Canyon Road Speed Emphasis when he clocked a black Escalade traveling 67 mph and making dangerous lane changes. When the officer attempted a traffic stop, the Escalade fled, and a short pursuit began. Due to dangerous speeds and wet roads, a PIT maneuver was conducted, which ended the pursuit and disabled the Escalade in a ditch. The 20-year-old male driver was arrested, and the 19-year-old male passenger was released at the scene. Inside the Escalade, two firearms could be seen in plain view along with narcotics. The vehicle was taken for a search warrant. It was later discovered the first firearm was stolen and converted to a short-barrel rifle, and the second was a pistol with a switch that converted it to a machine gun. Multiple charges are being forwarded to a prosecutor, and the investigation is ongoing.
On February 16, around 4:00pm, deputies received reports of a suspicious person in the area of the 19900 block of 122nd St. E. A resident reported the subject was prowling around cars and backyards dressed in a UPS outfit. When deputies arrived, they located a 37-year-old female dressed as a UPS worker and had a fake badge. It takes a quick turn when deputies locate a firearm on her person. A search of her person found burglary tools and drugs. She was arrested for being a felon in possession of a firearm, criminal attempt at burglary, criminal impersonation for disguising herself as a UPS driver, and possession of burglary tools.
On February 17, at approximately 10:30pm, one of our deputies observed a yellow Mitsubishi black-out all his lights while driving at a high rate of speed at the 400 block of Valley Ave. The deputy attempted a traffic stop, and the vehicle eluded the officer with no lights on. This is a well-known strategy for suspects that want to escape police in a pursuit. The deputy lost sight of the vehicle and the pursuit was terminated. A few minutes later, deputies were informed the Mitsubishi was located flipped over and the driver was gone. A short while later, the driver showed up with friends to get his car, was identified as the driver, and arrested. If you recall from last year, this same driver of the yellow Mitsubishi from our May 2024 street racer takedown video in the Frederickson area was arrested for reckless endangerment when he had a passenger hanging out the window while driving on 176th St. E.
A total of 139 police reports were written over the holiday weekend. Great job to all these deputies, and please be safe as we get through the remainder of this week.