Tulare foursome arrested after game of high-speed hide-and-seek

Four Tulare residents played chase with the Tulare Police Department on the afternoon on October 23, and the foursome were in custody when the game was done.

Officer Sunderland was on patrol when he saw Michael Dean Johnson driving a light brown Toyota Corolla. Sunderland knew that Johnson did not have a driver’s license and began to pursue the car, according to Tulare Police Capt. Jerry Breckinridge.

Behind the wheel, Johnson, a 29-year-old transient living in Tulare, noted the sirens and lights, but evaded the officer, exceeding 60 miles per hour through a school zone and three stop signs.

While in pursuit, Officer Sunderland discovered that the car had been reported stolen.

When the car finally came to a stop in front of a residence on W. Oakland in Tulare, the four occupants scattered, but their game of hide-and-seek wouldn’t end in smiles.

Tulare residents Christina Mills, 19, of 516 Auburn St., and Brandi Janese Johnson, 26, of 1135 E. Martin Luther King, hid behind garbage cans near the residence. They were the first to be found and were arrested. Mills and Brandi Johnson were both charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, accessory to a crime, and obstructing an officer in his line of duty, according to Tulare Police.

But the game wasn’t over. As officers noted that the residence had a dog door big enough for a person to climb through, one of them looked through the kitchen window and spotted a fresh shoe print on the floor.

The officers followed the trail of footprints to find Aaron Joe Pasillas, 29, of 1230 W. Oakland in Tulare, hiding under a bed in one of the bedrooms. He was arrested and charged with being an accessory to a crime, being under the influence of a controlled substance, giving police officers false identification and he was served with three outstanding warrants.

In the meantime, the driver was still snug in his hiding place. Officers noticed fresh insulation on the floor of a bedroom closet, an indication that someone had recently been up to the attic, Breckinridge said.

Officers found Michael Johnson hiding in the insulation up in the attic of the residence. He was arrested and charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, evading police with disregard for public safety, accessory to a crime, obstructing an officer while in the line of duty and violating his parole.