HIGHLAND – San Bernardino County Sheriff’s deputies on a car chase to apprehend a suspect got involved in some tricky driving in order to make the stop.
On Saturday, August 22, Anthony Valdepena, 28 of Highland, was arrested on at least three charges after evading officers looking to make a routine traffic stop. He was assigned a court date to appear in San Bernardino Superior Court.
On routine patrol that Saturday night just before 8 p.m., a Central Station deputy saw the car driven by Valdepena recklessly cutting off multiple vehicles and driving across several lanes in traffic.
When Valdepena pulled into a driveway, the deputy pulled in behind him to make contact. According to reports, Valdepena accelerated and drove head-on into traffic. The deputy tailed the Mitsubishi Valdepena was driving, which developed into a high speed chase with the suspect driving as fast as 100 mph.
During the pursuit, according to reports, Valdepena slammed on his brakes, forcing pursuing deputies to swerve to avoid a collision. They stated that Valdepena twice turned into the path of the deputies’ vehicles, forcing them to swerve out of any possible collisions.
Valdepena lost control and collided with a building at Sierra and Rialto in San Bernardino.
On the third occasion at Sierra Way and Rialto Avenue in San Bernardino, Valdepena collided with a deputy’s vehicle and his car crashed into the wall of an abandoned building. Valdepena was taken into custody, according to reports, without further incident.
Authorities later determined that Valdepena is a gang member on felony probation for terrorist threats. When he was arrested, deputies found a loaded 9-millimeter handgun and a usable amount of narcotics.
Among the charges Valdepena will face at his September 2 court appearance will be assault with a deadly weapon, being a felon in possession of a firearm and felony evading, with a gang enhancement.
