Two high-speed chases lead Whatcom deputies to hit-and-run driver, illegal weapons
Whatcom Sheriff’s Office deputies made two arrests this weekend after high-speed chases, according to Chief Deputy Rodger Funk.
In the early morning hours of Saturday, Feb. 11, deputies separately arrested Daniel Szczygielski, 38, and Michelle Diaz, 34.
In the first chase, deputies responded to a report of a fight in Bellingham when the people allegedly involved got in a car and left the area.
Deputies followed the car and developed reasonable suspicion of DUI due to erratic driving at a high speed and poor lane travel, Funk wrote in a press release.
The driver, later identified as Szczygielski, allegedly refused to stop, exited I-5 and entered it again going northbound in the southbound lanes.
While pursuing the vehicle, it reached speeds greater than 100 MPH on northbound I-5, Funk said. The driver eventually jumped out of the vehicle and deputies arrested him after a foot chase, according to Funk.
After searching Szczygielski’s vehicle, police found a stolen handgun, 13 grams of fentanyl, stolen mail, a stolen credit card and a stolen check.
He was charged with attempting to elude a police vehicle, reckless driving, DUI, driving without a valid operating license, unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of stolen property and financial fraud.
Szczygielski was in custody at the Whatcom County Jail as of Tuesday morning, according to state jail records.
Second chase
Deputies separately arrested Diaz while responding to a hit-and-run in the 1300 block of Slater Road in north Bellingham.
Diaz allegedly did not have her headlights on when deputies located her vehicle, although it was dark out. She also allegedly maintained poor lane travel and reached speeds of 110 MPH, according to Funk.
Spike strips were used to stop the vehicle and the driver fled on foot before being arrested.
Diaz was charged with DUI, eluding a police vehicle, reckless endangerment, obstructing, resisting arrest and second-degree assault.
She is out of custody after being booked into the Whatcom County Jail and released, according to state jail records.
Washington State Patrol trooper Anthony Califano told The Bellingham Herald for another story that vehicle pursuits in Washington State are limited to crimes involving violence, sex or drunken drivers under a 2021 law.
This story was originally published February 14, 2023 at 11:37 AM.
