Man who led police on high-speed chase starting at Canadian border charged in Whatcom County
The suspect in a carjacking at the Canadian border that led to a high-speed chase across Whatcom County on Dec. 12 has been charged in Whatcom County.
Shawn Bergstrom, 42, is accused of using a bladed weapon to steal a black Toyota pickup and ramming the vehicle into a car in the border line to enter the United States on Dec. 12, according to court documents. Authorities said the vehicle also nearly ran over Border Patrol officers near the crossing.
Bergstrom is facing charges of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a stolen vehicle, both class B felonies. He is also being charged with attempting to elude police, a class C felony, and hit and run of an attended vehicle, a gross misdemeanor.
The chase started at the border crossing near Blaine and tracked south on Interstate 5 all the way through Whatcom County, ending near the Bow Hill rest area in Skagit County.
Troopers from Washington State Patrol stopped the vehicle by performing a PIT maneuver, causing it to crash into a ditch. A standoff ensued, and Bergstrom eventually threw a machete out of the vehicle. He then climbed out the vehicle and assumed a fetal position on the hood before being taken into custody.
The vehicle was confirmed to be stolen from a business in Canada hours before the arrest, which was confirmed by the Royal Canadian Mountain Police, according to court documents.
Bergstrom is listed in court documents as an unhoused individual from British Columbia.
.jpg)