Men arrested after pursuit of stolen truck along Highway 50

A pursuit of a stolen 2017 Chevy Pickup began on Highway 50 near Riverton and ended near Sly Park Wednesday, leading to the arrest of two men, one for attempted murder of an officer.

The Placerville California Highway Patrol (CHP) attempted to pull over the truck driven by Cesar Ramos, 26, of Hollister, Calif. at Riverton. Instead of stopping, Ramos sped away in the westbound direction at speeds of 90-110 mph.

When the pickup reached Sly Park Road, the driver intentionally crossed over into the eastbound lanes of Highway 50. The pursuit was then terminated as to not create an unsafe roadway. At least two vehicles had to swerve to avoid a head-on collision with the pickup according to CHP.

With the assistance of the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office (EDSO) and a CHP helicopter, Ramos and his passengers were located near the Ridgeway Drive exit where a CHP officer had the road blocked. Ramos exited the highway at Ridgeway, accelerated the stolen truck and rammed into the CHP car. The pickup became disabled afterwards on Pony Express Trail and Ramos fled on foot. He remained at large for almost an hour until he was captured by an EDSO deputy and his K-9, who ended up biting the suspect.

The passenger in the truck, Los Gatos resident Jacob Varela, 21, was arrested for being under the influence and in possession of a stolen cell phone and was booked into the EDSO jail with Ramos. Varela is still in the jail on $39,500 bail.

Ramos's bail is $2,625,000 due to the attempted murder of a public officer charge stemming from ramming the officer's car, evading, driving the wrong way on a road, vehicle theft and obstruction.

The juvenile was released to Child Protective Services.

CHP is asking for anyone affected by this driver driving wrong way or hit as a result of the driver's reckless behavior to please call the Placerville CHP and speak to Officer Ellison, 530-622-1110.