Clearlake >> Clearlake police arrested a parolee at large after a high speed chase on Saturday evening. Henry Hikalea, 33 of Santa Rosa, was booked on three charges in addition to the outstanding warrant.
At approximately 8:07 p.m. on Saturday, Clearlake Police Officer T. Franklin made a traffic stop on a 2013 Nissan for driving recklessly in the area of Cottonwood and Walnut Street. According to Lt. Tim Celli, when Officer Franklin approached the vehicle, the driver, who was not known to the officer at the time, took off at a high rate of speed. Officer Franklin made his way back to his patrol vehicle and pursued after the driver, later identified as Hikalea.
A background check revealed that Hikalea was a parolee at large. In addition, shortly after the pursuit initiated officers were notified by dispatch that the vehicle was reported stolen out of Santa Rosa.
Additional Clearlake Police Officers joined in the pursuit. Hikalea led officers on a pursuit through the City of Clearlake and up onto State Highway 53 with speeds sometimes reaching 100 miles per hour, Celli reported in a press statement. Hikalea led officers back into the City of Clearlake reaching speeds of up to 60 miles per hour on surface streets for just over seven miles.
Celli reported that Hikalea was “driving with complete disregard for public safety.”
When the pursuit reached the area of Lakeshore Drive and Villa Way, Hikalea rammed his vehicle into a patrol vehicle. At that point officers used police intervention to bring Hikalea’s vehicle to a stop.
Once Hikalea’s vehicle was stopped officers took him into custody without further incident. Altogether two Clearlake Police vehicles and the stolen vehicle were damaged in the incident, but no one was injured.
Hikalea was later transported to the hospital for precautionary reasons and then booked in the Lake County Jail for his outstanding warrant, possession of a stolen vehicle felony evading and assault on a police officer. The California Highway patrol was requested to the scene for assistance and diagramming. Lakeshore Drive at Villa Way was closed for approximately one hour during the investigation.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact Officer Franklin.
