Man fleeing police tries hijacking car on I-82 by crawling through window

A 29-year-old man was arrested along Interstate 82 in Washington after trying to flee from a Umatilla police officer in a suspected stolen pickup.

The chase started when a Umatilla police officer’s dash license plate reader alerted him to a stolen Dodge Ram pickup at a Circle K parking lot about 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, according to a news release.

The pickup had been reported stolen from Hermiston on Monday, June 1.

The driver, Dylan Ostrom of Umatilla, reportedly saw the officer and sped away.

The officer pursued him and eventually both crossed the Columbia River into Washington on Interstate 82.

Ostrom then crashed through a fence and into a farm field before he jumped out of the truck and started running, police said.

A Umatilla detective chased Ostrom on foot for about a mile, eventually ending back at the highway.

“Upon reaching the interstate, the suspect attempted to stop passing vehicles and then climbed through the open passenger-side window of an uninvolved motorist’s vehicle,” Umatilla police said.

Before the car could drive off, another Umatilla officer blocked the car and the detective removed Ostrom from inside, police said.

He was booked into the Benton County jail on misdemeanor theft charges, but has since been released.

He potentially faces charges of eluding police and unauthorized use of a vehicle in Umatilla County.