Our deputies were hard at work this weekend! Today, we are highlighting three calls for your awareness.
#1 Pursuit and Forgery
On April 14th at approximately 1:30am, deputies attempted a traffic stop on a black Escalade that had the rear license plate obstructed by a dark tinted cover, and the license plate was not matching the correct make and model of the Escalade. The vehicle did not stop, and our deputies pursued. A successful PIT was conducted at the 15800 block of Meridian Ave. E.
The 31-year-old male driver was taken into custody along with his 22-year-old female passenger. After a closer look at the license plate, it was a fake paper picture of a license plate that was laminated and placed on the vehicle to look real. Deputies could see large amounts of small baggies, cash, and drug paraphernalia inside the vehicle. The vehicle was impounded for a search warrant for suspicions of drug distribution. The male was booked for eluding and forgery for the license plate and possibly more charges pending the findings of the search warrant.
#2 Arrest Warrant for Sexual Assault of a Child
On April 12th at approximately 7:00am, our deputies arrested a 54-year-old male on a felony warrant from California for Sexual Assault of a Child with a bail of $1,000,000. Pierce County deputies had attempted the arrest a couple weeks prior but were unsuccessful in locating the subject. After gathering more information and conducting surveillance, the suspect was finally taken into custody. He will be extradited back to California for his warrant.
#3 Teen Driver DUI/Collision Released Back to Parent
On April 13th at approximately 12:30am, deputies were traveling on Park Ave. S when a minivan came zooming by them heading the opposite direction at a high rate of speed. Deputies turned around to attempt a traffic stop, but the van had blacked out the headlights to evade the deputies. Due to the high speeds and not seeing the vehicle, deputies did not pursue.
Shortly later, deputies were flagged down by a bystander stating the minivan had crashed into a watery ditch and the driver was walking in the roadway. Deputies apprehended the driver, who refused to comply and was hit with a 40 mm non-lethal beanbag shotgun. After this, the male complied and was taken into custody. It turns out the male driver was 16 years old and heavily intoxicated. After the DUI was processed, he was released to his parents.
You may have a lot of questions about the teen DUI driver. Well, first off, laws do not allow us to show any video or audio of juveniles; secondly, laws do not allow us to book juveniles for misdemeanors. A first-time DUI and reckless driving charge are misdemeanors and non-bookable for juveniles at Remann Hall Juvenile Detention Center.
As always, we will keep doing our part in keeping the community safe. Have a great week.