Washington County, Oregon – The hunt is on for a suspected drunk driver near Bethany Lake in Washington County this morning. Deputy Jeff Talbot with the Washington County Sheriff’s office says they got a lot of calls about a wild driver on Highway 26 westbound just after 1:15am. Deputies chased the suspect to the Bethany Lake area. He took off on foot. Officers heard splashing in the water and thought he might be in the lake. They used K-9’s and setup a water rescue. But have not found the suspect yet.

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On Tuesday, January 8, 2019, at 1:16 a.m., Washington County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to reports of a blue 2000 Chevrolet Blazer driving erratically on Highway 26 westbound. One of the two callers witnessed the vehicle strike the highway guardrail near the Oregon Zoo exit and continue on.

The vehicle was seen taking the Northwest 185th Avenue exit and continuing northbound towards the Rock Creek community. At 1:28 a.m., deputies located the vehicle and a short pursuit ensued, ending when the driver crashed through a park fence and fled on foot from a dead end street in the 4800 block of Northwest Columbia Avenue.

Two K-9 teams, from the sheriff’s office and Hillsboro Police, responded to search the area. At one point during the search, deputies heard splashing from the vicinity of Bethany Lake. Personnel from Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue and their water rescue team responded and assisted deputies in searching the Bethany Lake Park area.

After an extensive search the driver was not located. The whereabouts of the suspect are not known. Deputies are attempting to contact the vehicle’s registered owner.

The driver is described as a darker-skinned male, 5-foot-8 tall, slim build, wearing a dark hoodie sweatshirt.

Anyone with information is asked to call non-emergency dispatch at (503) 629-0111.

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