A high-speed police chase in Kelso where two men drove into oncoming traffic on I-5 twice to evade police ended with Cowlitz County Sheriff’s deputies arresting two people on the side of I-5 about a mile apart from each other,
Mark Garrett Hector, 31, of Kalama, and a second, unidentified, suspect were arrested and booked into Cowlitz County Jail on charges of attempting to elude law enforcement officers, reckless endangerment and resisting arrest.
On Wednesday Cowlitz County deputies spotted a gold minivan connected to a shoplifting incident in Kelso running red lights, the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office press release says. When a deputy attempted to stop the minivan the vehicle fled north into oncoming traffic on southbound I-5.
The minivan exited at milepost 48 where a Castle Rock police unit chased the two men north on Huntington Avenue where the minivan was reportedly swerving at oncoming traffic and forced a pedestrian to dive out of the way at a crosswalk, the release says.
As the minivan approached I-5 near exit 49, Castle Rock police attempted to stop it. Similar to Cowlitz County Deputies’ attempting to prevent the vehicle from going into oncoming I-5 traffic, they were unsuccessful.
For the second time, the minivan headed north on southbound I-5 until about milepost 51 where it wrecked next to the Toutle River RV Resort, the release says.
Police took the unidentified passenger into custody while the driver, Hector, fled on foot. Cowlitz County Deputies, Castle Rock Police and Washington State Patrol troopers searched the area with a K-9 and drone but failed in finding the driver initially.
Hector was eventually found farther north near milepost 52 where he resisted arrest and ran across all six lanes I-5 until he was taken into custody by deputies.
