Stolen-car joyride ends in Holgate smashup

Published 12:00 am Friday, March 31, 2017

Three people, evidently on a Sunday joyride, using a vehicle listed as stolen, caught the attention of an East Precinct officer just after noon on Sunday, February 26.

The officer radioed for backup and signaled the driver to stop near S.E. 80th Avenue and Center Street.

“Instead of complying, the suspect driver quickly backed up the stolen car, hit the front bumper of the police car, and then sped away southbound on 80th Avenue,” reported Portland Police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson.

Not willing to risk others in the path of a wildly driven car, the officer called off the pursuit near S.E. 75th Avenue and Holgate Boulevard.

Although no longer being chased, the suspect sped away along Holgate, hit an occupied car, lost control, and then crashed into a parked van.

“The suspect, 39-year-old Jacob Daniel Ober, and his two passengers, were transported to Portland hospitals for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries; occupants of the other vehicle were not injured,” Simpson said.

At the hospital, Ober was given criminal citations for Unlawful Use of a Vehicle, Attempt to Elude by Vehicle, and multiple counts of Failure to Perform the Duties of a Driver (Hit and Run).

It turned out that Ober also had an outstanding warrant for his arrest and was given yet another citation to appear in court — at a later time, since he had been admitted into the hospital.