Local man arrested after bus chase

A man driving a Grant Transit Authority bus out of Moses Lake was pursued by police on Wednesday morning, with the chase ending in Electric City at the intersection of Hillcrest Avenue and SR-155 where the driver hit a stop sign and came to a stop.

The bus had been reported stolen at about 7 a.m., and Moses Lake Police and other agencies were watching for it when a Grant County Sheriff's deputy spotted it about 30 minutes later.

The driver, 62-year-old Richard D. Manley of Grand Coulee, was on highway 28 near Stratford. He turned north on Pinto Ridge Road.

Lake Roosevelt Schools in Coulee Dam got a call from Grant County dispatcher about 8:15 advising of the situation and calling for a lockdown, Superintendent Paul Turner said.

The bus traveled through the town of Coulee City, then headed out of town north on SR-155, where Grand Coulee Police set up spike strips about seven miles north of Coulee City, the sheriff's office reports. Those spikes deflated one of the bus's left rear dual tires, but the driver was able to keep going at high speeds.

Man steals Grant Transit Authority bus, leads police on long pursuit — https://t.co/pbhve3ZsYy pic.twitter.com/ETDvCzRGwx

— Grant County Sheriff (@GrantCoSheriff) February 3, 2021

Another Grand Coulee officer set up spikes strips just south of Electric City, which deflated the right front tire of the bus. About a half mile later, the bus veered to the right while attempting to turn onto a street. The bus left the road, through a ditch and up an embankment, where it came to rest.

Manly was arrested and booked into the Grant County Jail for investigation of motor vehicle theft and felony eluding.

Lake Roosevelt Schools came out of the lockdown about 8:40, Turner said.

Local police have had multiple encounters with Manley, the most recent on Monday when a caller reported a man walking along the roadway flailing his arms. Manley was a suspect in a Grand Coulee burglary in early December 2020, police records show.

Grand Coulee Police Sgt. Gary Moore told The Star that the top speed during the chase was about 80 miles per hour.

Sheriff's deputies, officers from the Moses Lake and Soap Lake police departments, and the Washington State Patrol all joined in the chase and capture.

Soap Lake police shared the video.