Washington, D.C., man charged following chase

A Washington, D.C., man who allegedly led local and federal law enforcement on a high-speed chase through Eureka is being held on a $250,000 bond.

Rastesfaye Neil, 39, faces criminal endangerment, fleeing from a peace officer and first offense reckless driving charges following the Jan. 23 pursuit in north Lincoln County.

County and municipal law enforcement responded to state Highway 37 after U.S. Border Patrol agents reported a motorist fleeing from a traffic stop about 9:35 a.m., according to court documents. In affidavits, Deputy Robert Salyer and Eureka Police officer Steve Iker recounted the chase, which at times hit speeds of up to 140 miles per hour.

Salyer reached the scene first, catching up to the fleeing vehicle near Highway 37 and Pinkham Creek Road. He illuminated his lights, but the vehicle — described as a Nissan Altima — roared past him, he wrote.

Salyer gave chase, but struggled to keep up as his target hit speeds of 120 miles per hour.

Iker, who arrived just west of U.S. Highway 93, attempted to block the road with his vehicle. When the Altima drove through, partially leaving the roadway to avoid the police vehicle, Iker joined the pursuit.

In his affidavit, Iker recounted backing off as the caravan of vehicles approached Eureka. He was hoping, ultimately in vain, that the Altima’s driver would slow down as well. Near the intersection with 6th Street, the Altima did slow briefly when coming up against traffic. But the Altima crossed into the lane for oncoming traffic and began speeding up, Iker wrote.

The vehicle hit speeds of 100 miles per hour as it traveled through Eureka, Iker recounted.

Iker also saw the fleeing motorist “make dangerous moves” to avoid local traffic. In the affidavit, he recalled calling for any law enforcement personnel up ahead to use stop sticks on the Altima, which he deemed an “extreme danger to the public.”

Iker was able to pull ahead of the Altima soon after and tried to force the motorist to slow down. It worked until they hit a flat and plowed stretch.

The driver of the Altima reached 100 miles per hour in an attempt to pass Iker. In court documents, Iker wrote that the motorist tried to bump his police vehicle.

“… I knew at that speed if they bumped me, we both could have been in serious danger,” Iker wrote. “I moved slightly over to avoid the contact of vehicles.”

They eventually came upon stop sticks, which the driver of the Altima hit before going into a ditch off of U.S. Highway 93. A Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office deputy was the first to stop and get out on foot.

Iker wrote that the deputy drew his weapon and kept several of the occupants of the Altima at gunpoint. One, though, took off on foot for the nearby woods with Iker on his heels.

According to the affidavit, the man tripped about 40 yards from the road, which is where Iker caught him. He handcuffed the man, who he described as giving off the strong odor of marijuana.

Suffering a knee injury, the man was taken to a nearby clinic for medical care. The other suspects were turned over to U.S. Border Patrol, according to court documents.

Judge Jay Sheffield of Lincoln County Justice Court set Neil’s bail at $250,000 on Jan. 26. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Feb. 3.