Golfers chase and tackle escaping suspect on back nine

Golfers in Spanaway scored a hole in one when they assisted in catching a fleeing crime suspect recently.

It all started Friday afternoon when deputies were checking the identifications of a pair of drug suspects. The two men were associated with a duffel bag found in bushes near a gas station on Pacific Ave. in Spanaway.

The bag contained heroin related drug paraphernalia, empty drug baggies and several vehicle key fobs.

The men gave false identifications to the deputies.

"When the deputies went to confront the men about giving fake names, the first man jumped on his bicycle and began to rapidly pedal across Military Lane and onto Pacific Ave.," the Sheriff's Department said in a note on social media.

The man eventually rode his bike on to the fairway of Lake Spanaway Golf Course. With no way to pursue, except on foot, the deputies were below par at that point.

Then, golfers became cop caddies.

"Multiple citizens offered to assist the three deputies in pursuing after the suspect," the Sheriff's Department said. "One deputy got into a sedan driven by a civilian, while the other two deputies jumped into a cart that was offered to them by a golfer."

The deputies and a civilian driver closed in on the suspect between the 10th and 15th holes, the Sheriff's Department said.

"As the deputies were jumping out of the vehicle and the golf cart, another golfer ran up to the suspect and tackled him off the bicycle," the Sheriff's Department said.

Deputies had to tase the suspect before they could place him in handcuffs. Medics treated him for minor abrasions.

The 31-year-old suspect had a felony warrant for his arrest. He was booked into the Pierce County Jail for escape from custody, obstruction, making a false statement and resisting arrest.

This story was originally published July 4, 2018 at 11:51 AM.