Police pursue a man who stole a car through Lake Stevens

LSHS and Highland Elementary put on lock down BY PAM STEVENS | EDITOR Dozens of police officers scoured the city of Lake Stevens last Thursday, Sept. 4, in pursuit of a man who had stolen a minivan.

A Lake Stevens Police Officer tried to pull the man over, to no avail.
“Officer Aukerman observed the stolen vehicle off of Lakeshore Dr.,” Lake Stevens Police Chief Randy Celori said. “The vehicle then fled down Lakeshore but due to the high rate of speed, the officer terminated the pursuit.”

The man dumped the vehicle on the 2300 block of 112th Ave. NE where officers and Sheriff’s Deputies converged.

The police received 911 calls saying that a man was running through a neighborhood near Lake Stevens High School.

Both Lake Stevens High School and Highland Elementary School were placed in lock down around 9:50 a.m.

“We received reports that the driver was fleeing on foot in the direction of the high school,” Celori said. “Officers set up containment of a several block area and Lake Stevens High School was placed under lock down while Highland Elementary was placed in soft lock down for safety reasons.”

Students at the two schools were never in danger but were locked down as a precautionary measure.

“Students have been practicing lock down drills for years, so this event went extremely well,” Arlene Hulten, Community Relations Director for the School District said. “Students coming to campus during the lock down were quickly ushered in by Principal Collins.  At Highland, students were in a “soft lock down” which meant the outside doors were locked and students were able to move about normally inside the building.  Principal Gina Anderson reported that students and teachers all did a great job.”

During the lock down a K9 unit was brought to help search for the man, however, it lost track of the man’s scent.

“Five minutes later we received a 911 call that the suspect was observed running down Cedar Road toward the Lundeen Park area,” Celori said. “Officers then set-up containment down by Lundeen Park and the Sandy Beach area.”

Jesse White, the 23-year-old man from Marysville, was located by police in a wooded area at the 10600 block of Vernon Road.

The man has an extensive criminal history including burglary, prior traffic pursuits, weapons, violations, court order violations and possession of stolen property, Celori said.

The minivan was recovered along with property that seems to be related to a theft in Snohomish,

“The individual was booked on multiple warrants, being in possession of a stolen vehicle and alluding a police officer,” Celori said. “It was very long and somewhat tedious, however, the officers were persistent and were able to take the individual into custody without anybody being injured.”

Hulten acknowledged that the LSPD consistently updated them on what was happening.

“We were in constant communication with Chief Celori throughout the entire lock down,” she said. “Our district is so fortunate to have the support and the direct avenues of communication with the Lake Stevens Police Department.  While the police activity was just south of our high school football field and never entered any of our school campuses, the police department will always make decisions to ensure student safety.”  

All schools within the district will have lock down drills this week.

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