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Shooting suspect caught after chase

The Bakersfield Californian | Friday, Aug 3 2007 11:41 AM

Last Updated: Friday, Aug 3 2007 11:41 AM

A Bakersfield shooting suspect was taken into custody Thursday after a high-speed chase on Rosedale Highway.

Seth Edwards, 29, was booked into the Central Receiving Facility on suspicion of possession of a loaded gun, evading and resisting arrest and a parole violation, according to a Kern County Sheriff’s Department news release.

An off-duty sheriff’s sergeant was returning home from SWAT training at 10:20 p.m. when he saw a gray El Camino parked in a lot at Rosedale Highway and Allen Road, the news release said. The sergeant recognized the vehicle from a prior broadcast and knew the driver, Edwards, was wanted by the Bakersfield Police Department for a July 22 shooting, as well as a robbery that had occurred in Sacramento and for a parole violation.

When the sergeant approached the car, Edwards drove off and a pursuit followed that reached speeds of more than 80 mph, the news release said. Edwards crashed into a light pole near Verdugo Lane and ran from the car with a gun in his hand.

Responding deputies chased him and caught him in a residential neighborhood a short distance away, the news release said. The gun was no longer visible and Edwards fought with deputies as they took him into custody.

The handgun was later found a short distance from the crash site in a parking lot that Edwards had run through, according to the news release.