High speed Lincoln County police chase ends in three-hour swim

In chase lasting more than three hours, a man fleeing from Lincoln County Sheriff’s Deputies swam the width of the Columbia River Thursday while a boat containing deputies and a Washington State Patrol trooper trailed behind him.

A deputy spotted a man speeding and passing on a double-yellow line on the eastern edge of Wilbur and attempted to pull him over, according to a the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. The driver flipped a U-turn and headed west on U.S. Highway 2 back into the town. The deputy called off the chase for safety reasons but other deputies continued searching the area, according to the sheriff’s office.

The driver was soon spotted at the Keller Ferry, where he shouted “some derogatory words” and jumped into the river, the Sheriff’s Office said. Deputies and the trooper “commandeered” a boat and followed the man. They threw him a life vest, but he refused to put it on or get in the boat. Instead, he swam across the river while hanging on to the life vest.

Once on shore, there was an hour-long “verbal stand-off” until the man was arrested. He has been identified as 27-year-old Justin T. Gentemann. He was booked into the Lincoln County Jail on suspicion of felony eluding.