Bystander hospitalized after drug suspect leads Whatcom authorities on high-speed chase
Whatcom County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a request for a welfare check for an unconscious man in a pickup truck, and when they arrived the man woke up and drive off at 80 mph.
The incident took place around 2:40 p.m. Oct. 5 on Olson Road. Police eventually tracked down Randy Alan Chandler Jr., 37, and a search of the vehicle revealed a powder that field tested as methamphetamine. The search also revealed glass drug pipes and a digital scale with suspected drug residue, according to Amy Cloud with the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office.
When law enforcement first contacted Chandler, he was in a truck with the window open and the motor running. When he woke up, he took off south, taking a route that led him to Slater Road. He then went east to Northwest Drive and turned south, Cloud said.
Deputies took off after Chandler’s vehicle in a high-speed pursuit.
While heading south, he crossed the center line and struck an oncoming vehicle, sending the driver to the hospital with a possible neck injury, Cloud said.
Chandler attempted to run from the scene but was taken into custody by nearby law enforcement. He was arrested on suspicion of vehicular assault, attempt to elude a police vehicle, possession of controlled substance, driving under the influence of drugs, and driving with a suspended license.
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