Suspect in high-speed chase caught in Idaho County

GRANGEVILLE — A 29-year-old man who led law enforcement officers on a high-speed chase Tuesday and eluded capture overnight was taken into custody early Wednesday.

Jackie Shayde Sedillo, no hometown given, was booked into the Idaho County Jail and made an initial appearance in magistrate court Wednesday afternoon. He has been charged with 15 felonies, including four counts of stolen property, two counts of grand theft, one count of robbery, one count of eluding an officer, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, three counts of aggravated assault, two counts of burglary and one count of battery with intent to commit a serious felony.

Idaho County Sheriff Doug Giddings said Wednesday morning Sedillo was taken into custody without incident. He was first taken to Syringa General Hospital in Grangeville for evaluation before being taken to the jail.

“He went to the hospital; we took him there,” Giddings said. “He was dehydrated and pretty beat up from the brush he was crawling in, but they X-rayed him and nothing is broken.”

Giddings said Sedillo was not carrying a gun when he was arrested, although he allegedly did have a gun earlier.

According to a news release from the sheriff’s office, the incident began about 10 a.m. Tuesday when the Idaho County dispatch center was notified that Adams County was in pursuit of a stolen vehicle that was headed north toward Idaho County.

Giddings said earlier that an Adams County deputy who had attempted to stop Sedillo was dragged for a short distance after getting his arm caught in the car window. The deputy was not seriously injured, Giddings said.

A black 2017 Kia Sedona had been reported stolen to the Nampa Police Department on Saturday night or early Sunday. According to the news release, a white male with dark facial hair was driving the stolen vehicle and using a stolen credit card.

Idaho County deputies located the vehicle near the Sheep Creek Rest Area along U.S. Highway 95 and fell in behind the vehicle.

Two sets of spike strips were placed on the highway at milepost 234 near Grangeville. The driver of the Kia drove over the spike strips, which flattened both front tires. The driver continued on until he reached the line of cars that had been stopped because of the in-progress pursuit. The driver rear-ended a patrol vehicle and then exited the Kia.

The suspect, the news release said, was brandishing a gun. Giddings said the man “jerked an 84-year-old man” from his BMW, then fled in the BMW going both northbound and southbound before turning onto Lake Road, about 6 miles south of Grangeville. Idaho County deputies chased the vehicle, which was traveling in excess of 100 mph on gravel roads.

Spike strips were deployed at Tolo Lake Road and Highway 95, but they didn’t disable the BMW. The suspect continued on into Grangeville, turning onto Idaho Avenue, then on Court Street, which runs alongside Grangeville Elementary Middle School. All area schools and the hospital were put on lockdown for the safety of children and staff, the news release said.

The suspect continued into Grangeville and abandoned the BMW and allegedly stole a Ford F350 boom truck.

Officers caught up to the suspect and boom truck on Day Road north of Grangeville. The vehicle continued on the back roads but crashed into Cottonwood Creek Canyon. The driver fled on foot. Giddings said officers located the vehicle but the driver was not inside.

At one point Tuesday, the suspect turned up at a residence near Red Rock Road. The occupants of the house tried to persuade him to give himself up to authorities, Giddings said, but the suspect refused and left again on foot.

Nez Perce County Sheriff’s Air Posse launched a fixed-wing aircraft and the suspect was briefly located walking down a logging road in a heavily wooded area.

Giddings said officers from a number of agencies were stationed around the area where the suspect was believed to be hiding. Early Wednesday morning, a Nez Perce tribal officer spotted the suspect.

“(The suspect) ducked down and they said, ‘Yeah, that’s him,’ ” Giddings said. “He was in the brush, so we focused on that area and (a tactical helicopter from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office) focused on that area and deployed a (Idaho State Police) SWAT team out of Boise and Coeur d’Alene. They dropped down in the canyon below where he was. We were afraid he would run back down but they dropped below him and they came up and they found him hiding in the brush and arrested him.”

The sheriff expressed gratitude to the agencies involved in the search, including Idaho County, Adams County, Grangeville City Police, Idaho State Police, Cottonwood City Police, Lewis County and its canine unit, Idaho Fish and Game, U.S. Forest Service and Nez Perce Tribe.

Hedberg may be contacted at kathyhedberg@gmail.com or (208) 983-2326.