A speeding motorcyclist turned a routine traffic stop into a nearly hourlong, multi-county chase that started in Portland’s Lloyd District and ended at a Polk County gas station, police said. The pursuit ran along I-84, then south on I-5 through Clackamas, Marion and Polk counties, with officers in the air and on the ground tracking the rider until he was arrested without any reported injuries.
How the pursuit unfolded
Portland Transit Police first tried to pull the motorcycle over on I-84 after officers said they saw it traveling at a high rate of speed. Instead of stopping, the rider hit the throttle and took off, prompting the Portland Police Bureau’s Air Support Unit to start tracking from overhead. The chase shifted south onto I-5, looping through Portland’s Lloyd District and down toward the Salem area.
The pursuit quickly turned into a regional effort, with transit police, PPB air support, the sheriff’s offices in Clackamas, Marion and Polk counties, Salem and Keizer police, and Oregon State Police all involved, according to KGW.
Air support and coordination
PPB’s Air Support Unit routinely follows fleeing vehicles from above and radios a steady stream of location updates to officers on the ground, according to the Portland Police Bureau. In a May 12 release, the bureau said the unit responded to more than 1,200 calls last year and logged hundreds of flight hours in support of patrol. Officers involved in Friday’s chase pointed to that kind of eye-in-the-sky monitoring as a key factor in bringing the pursuit to a controlled end.
Arrest and charges
Polk County deputies arrested the rider at a gas station and booked him into the Polk County Jail, according to reporting. Authorities identified the suspect as a 44-year-old man who faces Multnomah County charges including felony attempt to elude and reckless driving, and said he also had an outstanding Multnomah County warrant. Other agencies may add their own charges as the case moves forward.
“Strong interagency communication and coordination, particularly the continuous tracking provided by PPB (air support), were instrumental in facilitating a safe arrest,” John Plock said, as reported by KGW…