PORTLAND, Ore. — Officers were called to the area of Northeast 134th Avenue and Prescott Drive around 3:40 Tuesday afternoon for a report of someone stealing a landscaping truck and assaulting the driver, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) said in a news release.
Police said the victim was filling up a lawnmower with fuel when the suspect, later identified as 30-year-old Benjamin Hendricks, kicked him, causing him to fall and hit his head on the concrete. He was taken to a hospital but is expected to recover.
Moments after the assault, the landscaping company used a GPS locator to give police an approximate location for the stolen landscaping truck, a Chevy 3500 dump truck hauling an enclosed trailer.
A PPB Air Support plane found the truck just a few blocks away from the initial crime scene, and patrol officers caught up to it near Northeast 138th and Sandy and tried to stop it. Police said that Hendricks "fled in a reckless manner," and patrol officers did not pursue him due to safety concerns.
As the airplane continued to follow, Hendricks drove into oncoming traffic and nearly hit two pedestrians before turning into a Gresham neighborhood and stopping near Northeast 186th Place and Wasco Street, police said.
The suspect made a run for it and was captured with the help of surrounding law enforcement agencies.
Hendricks was booked at the Multnomah County jail on charges of third-degree robbery, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, eluding and reckless driving.
Officers are working to recover some items that may have fallen out of the trailer during the incident, which include two weed eaters and a leaf blower. PPB also believes based on the suspect's reckless driving, there may be additional victims in this case. If you feel that you were a victim of this incident, call PPB's nonemergency phone line at 503-823-3333.