Moses Lake man charged with vehicle theft, attempting to elude

MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake man is facing charges in connection with a vehicle theft and high speed pursuit that started in Moses Lake and ended in Adams County.

Grant County prosecutors charged Kenneth Schappell, 31, of Moses Lake, in Grant County Superior Court with theft of a motor vehicle, attempting to elude and possession of heroin.

On Nov. 12 the Moses Lake Police Department received a report of a vehicle stolen from in front of a residence in the 900 block of South Ironwood Drive. The vehicle owner advised he started his vehicle to warm it up and when he returned, the vehicle was gone, according to court documents.

A short time later a deputy with the Grant County Sheriff’s Office was on patrol and heading north on Highway 17 when he noticed a vehicle matching the description of the stolen car heading south on Highway 17 approaching the stoplight at Yonezwawa Boulevard.

The driver of the vehicle, Schappell, reportedly turned west onto Yonezawa Boulevard and the deputy attempted to pull the car over. Schappell turned into the Lowe’s parking lot and stopped. He was told to put his hands outside of the vehicle, but refused and allegedly drove away when another deputy pulled into the parking lot. He was able to avoid the two deputies in the parking lot and eventually turned south onto Highway 17, where he allegedly reached speeds of 115 mph.

“Throughout the pursuit, Schappell would drive into oncoming traffic, causing the other vehicle to go off the roadway. Schappell would also swerve into oncoming vehicles, coming close to causing a collision,” wrote a deputy.

The suspect made a turn onto Road 6 Southeast, turned south onto Road R Southeast and took state Route 170 west before heading back onto Highway 17 again, where he made his way into Adams County. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office and Othello Police Department were contacted to provide assistance with the chase and spike strips were set up in an attempt to stop the vehicle.

Schappell was able to avoid the first set of spike strips and another set of strips were set up at Highway 17 and West Cunningham Road. One set of spike strips were successfully deployed on the left tires of the vehicle. Schappell continued driving and went a couple more miles until coming to a stop. He reportedly exited the vehicle and started to run into a nearby field. He was taken to the ground by a deputy after a short foot pursuit and taken into custody.