Man In Custody After Wild Pursuit Shuts Down I-5 In Everett

Northbound Interstate 5 in Everett was shut down for nearly three hours and the southbound lanes for about an hour Wednesday after a suspect in a police pursuit opened fire on deputies during rush hour, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office said.

SLIDESHOW: I-5 Shutdown Near Everett

UNCUT: Everett Pursuit, Takedown

Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Rebecca Hover said deputies were pursuing a black VW Jetta believed to be stolen around 6:05 p.m. when the driver fired shots at deputies then crashed on I-5 at 41st Street, left the vehicle, and ran into a residential neighborhood.

UNCUT: Suspect Taken Into Custody

The incident caused northbound I-5 to close at state Route 526 for nearly three hours. I-5 southbound at 41st Street Southeast was shut down for about an hour and reopened just after 7:00 p.m. The northbound lanes reopened at 8:50 p.m.

The Jetta's crash caused a van to crash and roll over. A woman was taken to the hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

When northbound traffic began moving, the backup was about five miles. During the closure, drivers began turning around, some driving the wrong way onto onramps to get off the freeway. Others found a muddy path that took them to a service road to exit.

Police took the man they say was the driver of the Jetta, 23-year-old Theodore Joseph Ohms, into custody at about 8:00 p.m.after a K-9 unit tracked him down in the 7100 Block of Olympic Drive. Hover said deputies later determined the Jetta was not stolen but the license plates had been canceled.

According to police documents, Ohms' girlfriend was in the car during the pursuit. Documents said she told police Ohms had bought methamphetamine earlier that same day for resale. After Ohms fired shots at the deputies, his girlfriend threw the gun out the window, police said. Officers said police located the .380 caliber handgun after Ohm's girlfriend described where she had thrown it.

Police said Ohms' girlfriend remained in the car after Ohms crashed the car and ran from police.

Police reports said in an interview with Ohms, he admitted to driving the car during the pursuit and attempting to elude the police. He also admitted to possessing the recovered pistol, pointing the pistol out of the car's sunroof and firing one shot from the pistol, all in an effort to get the pursuing police units to back off, documents said. Ohms denied that he fired the pistol at police with any intent to injure them, police say.

According to officials, Ohms refused to come to court on Thursday. A drag order will be issued to bring him to court on Friday.