Yuba County chase leads to hospital stay, arrest

A bit of happenstance for the Sutter County Sheriff's Department led to a brief pursuit through Yuba County on Wednesday evening, ending with one man in custody after he unsuccessfully fled in a vehicle and then on foot.

At about 6 p.m., sheriff's investigators spotted a GMC Sonoma pickup truck matching a description that went out about 20 minutes earlier as being driven by a man being sought in connection with a possible fraud case in Sutter County.

The investigators were checking on an unrelated case when they spotted the truck near Lindhurst Avenue and Tulip Road in Olivehurst, said sheriff's Detective Sgt. David Whiteaker.

"We were in an unmarked vehicle, but I think he knew we were cops," said Whiteaker, describing how the truck's driver, Lloyd Riggs of Olivehurst, began driving through several stop signs and stoplights in an apparent attempt to escape.

Deputies began pursuing Riggs, the only person in the truck, through Olivehurst and Linda, traveling as fast at 40 mph in neighborhoods and up to 55 mph on the more rural roads, according to Whiteaker.

Riggs eventually drove onto Riverside Avenue in Linda and to its end on a Yuba River levee road, where he left the truck and fled on foot over the levee and into the river bottoms.

Investigators caught him after about 100 yards, and he complained of hurting his knee when he fell down the levee while running, Whiteaker said. The chase lasted about 10 minutes, he said.

Though Riggs, 41, requested an ambulance, Whiteaker said he didn't appear to be badly hurt.

"He doesn't want to go to jail yet," he said. "He didn't seem hurt when he was still running."

Bi-County Ambulance took Riggs to Rideout Regional Medical Center in Marysville. Whiteaker said after Riggs was medically cleared, he would be booked into either the Yuba or Sutter County jails.

In addition to the fraud investigation, Whiteaker said, Riggs had outstanding felony warrants for possession of stolen property and a probation violation.

When he was taken into custody, Riggs had several knives on him, and medical officials questioned how much he drank, Whiteaker said.

In 2008, Riggs was arrested by NET-5 officers in connection with the sale of $6,000 worth of metamphetamine to someone working with NET-5, according to Appeal-Democrat archives.