ALBANY, Ore. (KOIN) — A police chase in Albany led to the arrest of a 24-year-old Salem man on Wednesday.
Twenty-four-year-old Grant Tyler Rasband was charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, burglary, reckless driving, eluding police and criminal mischief.
Just after 9:30 a.m., police received a report of a man acting suspiciously near an Albany convenience store. Police say that the vehicle description matched that of a car that was reported stolen earlier in the day.
According to police, when officers attempted to contact the suspect, Rasband, he fled from the scene. During the car chase, Rasband reportedly struck a FedEx delivery vehicle and then ran into a 2008 Chrysler PT Cruiser and a 1984 Isuzu pickup before coming to a halt in the parking lot of a Stop-n-Go store.
The car Rasband was driving allegedly suffered major damage after the 10-minute chase. Rasband had to be extricated from the car before being taken to the hospital. Police say he was the only one injured in the collisions.
Police were later able to verify that the 2022 Nissan Altima Rasband was driving had been reported stolen from Salem Nissan. All vehicles that were involved in the collisions had to be towed.
Robbery charges are pending as the Linn County Sheriff’s Office investigates. The car crashes are being investigated by Oregon State Police.