YREKA – What started as a routine equipment violation stop on Interstate 5 spiraled into a 122-mph midnight chase through Siskiyou County backcountry yesterday, ending with an 18-year-old Hoopa man behind bars and a green Acura TL crumpled in a secluded ravine.
The pursuit began when a California Highway Patrol officer attempted to pull over the Acura for equipment violations. Instead of yielding, the driver punched the accelerator, turning a minor infraction into a felony flight southbound on I-5 at triple-digit speeds. The fleeing vehicle rocketed down the freeway at 122 mph before making a desperate exit into the darkness of rural Siskiyou County.
The chase went off-road—literally. The suspect rammed through a metal gate and plunged into thick brush, tearing through terrain that no sedan was ever built to handle. The Acura ultimately met its end in a ravine, where law enforcement discovered it abandoned.
The driver had vanished into the night, but he didn’t stay gone long.
Through what the CHP described as “extensive investigative efforts,” the 18-year-old suspect was located and taken into custody today. He now faces felony charges for the reckless evasion that turned a simple equipment stop into a multi-agency manhunt.
The takedown was a coordinated effort between the Yreka Police Department, Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office, and California Fish and Wildlife—illustrating how local agencies converge when someone decides to turn a traffic stop into a demolition derby through the county’s wilderness.
Editor’s Note: This report was compiled from information posted on the Yreka CHP Facebook page.
