PORT ANGELES — Law enforcement officers continued to investigate Wednesday after two Port Angeles men were arrested following a high-speed car chase that ended in Olympic National Park.
Joseph Gregory Gaikowski, 27, and Sean Earl Gormley, 25, remained in the Clallam County jail Wednesday after being booked Tuesday for investigation of possession of a stolen vehicle and eluding a police vehicle.
A State Patrol trooper pursued a green Ford F-150 from Old Olympic Highway to the Deer Park Road area of the park after allegedly clocking it traveling 63 mph in a 50 mph zone.
The chase began at about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, reached speeds between 80 mph and 90 mph, and ended with the pickup truck being found abandoned on the side of Deer Park Road about 9 miles away from where the chase started, the State Patrol said.
Gaikowski and Gormley were arrested without incident in the woods in the Deer Park area after about 15 minutes of searching with Port Angeles Police Department police dogs, according to police accounts.
“Right now, the investigation is still ongoing,” Jesse Espinoza, deputy Clallam County prosecuting attorney, said Wednesday, adding that law enforcement are looking for evidence of the two suspects having been in the car.
The truck had been reported missing from a barn in Jefferson County on March 14, Espinoza said, though the truck’s owner did not see who took the truck.
Wallet, paperwork
Gormley’s wallet was found behind the passenger seat of the abandoned truck, according to the State Patrol report filed in court documents, as was paperwork associated with Gaikowski.
Both Gaikowski and Gormley have previous criminal records in Clallam County.
Gaikowski was found guilty of possession of making or having burglary tools in February in connection with a September burglary of cash, a vehicle and bows and arrows from an east Port Angeles archery club.
Gaikowski was sentenced to 120 days in jail but was released soon after his Feb. 14 sentencing with credit for the time he had spent in jail since he was arrested last November, said Alex Stalker, an attorney with Clallam Public Defender and Gaikowski’s representation in the burglary case.
Gormley pleaded guilty Feb. 21 to criminal impersonation and served 10 days in jail, according to information from Clallam County District Court.
He was arrested Feb. 15 after reportedly telling a Sequim shop owner he was a member of the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team, which he is not.
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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
