On Jan. 12, two suspects ages 30 and 33 were spotted in a stolen white Subaru by the Issaquah Police Department around 3 p.m. After attempting to pull them over, the suspects took off toward Bellevue, which was when the Issaquah Police Department phoned King County’s air support, Guardian One.
“They crashed the car, somehow disabled it by ramming the front tire,” said Meeghan Black, public information officer for the Bellevue Police Department. “The two suspects fled on foot. One of them was captured by King County, the other one carjacked a woman in a red Kia SUV.”
While the Kia SUV was sitting at a stop light, one suspect ran over and opened her door. The suspect forcefully removed the female driver from her vehicle, at which point an Issaquah police officer approached.
The officer drew their gun, holstered it, and ran over to pull the suspect out of the vehicle. The car went in reverse and slammed into both the officer and the officer’s patrol vehicle, then sped away.
“With the help of Guardian One, we were able to track the suspect,” said Black.
After fleeing from the carjacking scene, the suspect made their way to a residential area. As a resident was pulling into their garage in their blue Prius, the suspect got out of the Kia SUV and walked into the garage. Shortly after, the suspect left the garage and got back in the stolen SUV as an officer pulled up behind.
The suspect took off on I-90 and Washington State Patrol became involved, according to Black.
“They followed the suspect vehicle into Fall City where the suspect drove the car into a street that was covered in water and ended up in over four feet of water, at which point he surrendered,” said Black.
Guardian One footage shows the suspect driving into the water and drifting forward. However, the suspect got out in waist deep water, put both of their hands up and walked toward the officers to face arrest.
“The first guy that was apprehended by King County is a 30-year-old who lists his address from Idaho, and the guy we arrested is a 33-year-old who lists his address out of California,” said Black.
Black was uncertain whether the two suspects currently live in Washington state. In the stolen white Subaru, law enforcement located one gun, and in the Kia SUV, law enforcement located two knives.
“We booked our guy in on two counts of robbery, one count of assault, residential burglary, and attempt to elude — and possession of a stolen vehicle,” said Black. “The good news is none of the victims of the attempted or successful carjacking were injured, and there were just minor injuries to the officer.”
The suspects had their first King County court appearance on Jan. 13 and will face charges at their arraignment hearing within the next few days, according to Black.
Investigators identified the 30-year-old suspect as Ian Lemley as the passenger in the stolen vehicle. At the hearing, the prosecutor’s office argued that if released, it’s unlikely that Lemley would return. His bail was set at $30,000 and probable cause was found for Lemley being a fugitive from justice due to an outstanding warrant from Idaho.
The second suspect, 33-year-old Kaleb Bergquam, refused transportation from the jail to the courthouse twice. His arraignment hearing is expected to take place on Feb. 2.
Guardian One footage shows Issaquah police officer attempting to remove suspect from stolen vehicle but gets run over in the process. Courtesy of King County Sheriff’s Office Air Support Twitter.
