K-9 apprehends vehicle theft suspect at end of Redding pursuit

REDDING, Calif., — Authorities say a vehicle theft that led to a short pursuit and crash ultimately ended with the arrest of a local man after he fled on foot from pursuing officers and attempted to hide in thick vegetation early this morning, Tuesday, Oct. 19.

Redding Police Department’s K-9 “Chase” was instrumental in both locating and apprehending the man, who suffered dog bites and other injuries from the collision that stopped his flight for freedom.

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City of Redding police officers were dispatched to the Circle K convenience store at 2245 Hartnell Avenue just before 4:30 a.m. after receiving reports of a vehicle theft that had just occurred in the business’s parking lot, Redding Police Corporal Ryan Ellis later said of the incident and arrest.

The 911 caller told emergency dispatchers that he had left his vehicle running in the parking lot while he went into the convenience store and when he came back outside his vehicle was gone.

Koby Bustillos of Redding, was arrested after a vehicle pursuit and crash involving a vehicle he had just stolen from outside a Redding convenience store early this morning. Redding PD photos

A short time later, officers spotted the stolen vehicle being driven in the area of Shasta View Drive and State Route 44.

The officers followed the vehicle onto State Route 44 where a traffic stop was initiated; however, the driver, since identified as Koby Bustillos, 30, of Redding, refused to yield to the officers’ lights and sirens and sped away from officials.

Officers initiated a vehicle pursuit that ended just minutes later when the suspect attempted to exit the highway onto Airport Road. Traveling too fast for the curve on the exit, the stolen vehicle left the roadway where it collided with a fence and large oak tree, disabling the vehicle.

Bustillos then fled from the wrecked vehicle, running on foot into the nearby vegetation.

Officers established a perimeter around the general area and K-9 Chase was summoned to assist with the ongoing “extensive” search, Ellis explained.

With K-9 Chase’s nose leading the way, officers soon located Bustillos attempting to conceal himself within the thick vegetation. Despite being given multiple orders to surrender Butillos refused, at which time the police service dog was deployed into the brush to apprehend the uncooperative man, which the K-9 quickly managed with ease, and his teeth.

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After being captured, Bustillos was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment of minor injuries. He was later booked into the Shasta County Jail in Redding on suspicion of felony evading, possession of a stolen vehicle, hit and run causing property damage, and delaying or obstructing an officer.

Online jail records indicate he remains in custody and his bail amount had not yet been set.



Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).

Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County-based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.