Royal burglary suspect sought

ROYAL CITY — A suspect in a Royal City burglary reportedly led police on a high-speed chase and drove his vehicle off a cliff into Upper Goose Lake last Wednesday.

It started at about 9:20 a.m. when a Royal City resident arrived home in the 15000 block of Road B and discovered a suspicious vehicle parked and running in the driveway, Grant County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Kyle Foreman told the Columbia Basin Herald.

The homeowner reportedly took a photograph of the vehicle and was able to inform dispatchers which direction the vehicle was going when it left the scene.

Officers with the Royal City Police Department and deputies responded and tracked down the vehicle. A Royal City officer was able to keep a visual on the vehicle as it went across the O’Sullivan Dam and reportedly turned south onto Road K.2 and into the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge.

With snow, ice, mud and dangerous road conditions, Foreman said state troopers, deputies and other officers decided to block off all of the exits from the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge. Officers went into the refuge to search for the suspect vehicle and, at about 10:30 a.m., a deputy reportedly spotted some debris floating in Upper Goose Lake, Foreman said.

The debris was retrieved and is believed to belong to the same vehicle that fled police into the refuge area. The vehicle is believed to be submerged in up to 80 feet of water.

Divers searched the eastern shore of the lake, but were not able to locate the vehicle. There is no indication of the suspect getting out of the vehicle prior to going into Upper Goose Lake, according to the sheriff’s office. Foreman said an underwater robot arrived about 3:50 p.m. from Franklin County to assist in the search for the vehicle.

Deputies did not find a body inside the suspect vehicle that was pulled from the lake.

The Volkswagen Passat was recovered Wednesday afternoon by divers and with the help of an underwater robot from Franklin County, according to the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

The vehicle, which was reportedly spotted at the scene of a burglary in the 15000 block of Road B Southeast near Royal City, led police on a high-speed chase into the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge on Tuesday morning. Authorities blocked all possible exits to the refuge and debris from the suspect vehicle was later found floating on Upper Goose Lake.

The sheriff’s office reports there is no indication of the suspect getting out of the vehicle before crashing into the lake. The investigation into the incident is ongoing.

If you have any information contact the sheriff’s office at 509-762-1160 or email information to crimetips@grantcountywa.gov.