Man in tree arrested after caper involving high speeds, burglary, police say

A stolen car suspect was arrested after a lengthy caper that involved dangerous high speeds through two cities and an apartment break-in where he pleaded to be hidden; Police said law enforcement eventually found him up a tree.

Miquel Roque, 26, was listed Saturday as an inmate at Spokane County Jail on pending charges that include burglary, possession of heroin, possession of a stolen vehicle, driving while intoxicated and eluding law enforcement.

The chase began at about 9 p.m. Friday in the Garland District of north Spokane when police tried to pull over a purple Honda Civic driven by Roque, the release said.

Roque fled in the car, launching a 32-mile chase across Spokane, including the South Hill, at top speeds of 100 mph, then Spokane Valley, the release said.

“During this time Roque’s driving was very dangerous and placed many lives in jeopardy. During most of the incident, officers were not behind Roque actively pursuing him, yet he drove in this dangerous manner the entire time. He had gone into oncoming traffic and almost hit several cars,” the release said.

Citizens alerted law enforcement to his whereabouts, and a surveillance helicopter helped track the fleeing car, the release said.

Roque crashed the car in Spokane Valley and ran to an apartment complex at 2300 N. Wilbur Road, where he broke into an apartment and pleaded with its occupants to be hidden, the release said. The occupants refused and he fled again, the release said.

He was found in a tree near the complex by a K-9 unit, the release said.

Roque said he was “just hiding from his girlfriend” in the tree, came down the tree and was arrested, the release said.

Roque has a felony warrant from Idaho on a charge of grand theft, according to a news release from the Spokane Police Department.