Felon wanted after fleeing traffic stop in Benton County

UPDATED Sunday, January 24, 2021: According to jail records, Smith was booked into the Benton County Jail Sunday morning at about 10:00am.

BENTON COUNTY, Wash.-- Deputies with the Benton County Sheriff's Office have a warrant for a man who fled a traffic stop Saturday night, after a deputy spotted a firearm in the suspect's car.

According to Deputy Adam Flohr, Deputies stopped a white Toyota station wagon in the area of 1st and Gum in Kennewick at about 10:00 p.m. because it was leaving the area of another incident involving a possible custody issue and thought the vehicle may be related.

During the traffic stop, the deputy spotted a .22 long rifle sitting in the passenger seat, and requested additional deputies to help, because the driver, Jeremy Ryan Smith, 43, has a felony conviction on his record.

While officers were speaking to the suspect, he hit the gas and sped away from the scene, but not before a Kennewick Police Officer who had arrived on the scene as back-up tossed stop spike strips under the car, disabling the rear driver's side tire.

Deputy Flohr said Smith led deputies on a high speed chase toward Highway 397, then onto Finley Road, before turning onto a private road. That's when Smith ran off on foot.

Deputies set up a containment area, and worked with a local homeowner to view surveillance video to get an idea of what direction Smith ran toward.

On duty SWAT officers from surrounding law enforcement agencies responded, along with K9 Sable, to conduct a search, but Smith was not located. Deputies did locate the firearm on the side of Finley Road where Smith allegedly threw it as he was driving. 

Anyone with information about Smith's whereabouts is encouraged to contact the Benton County Sheriff's Office through the non-emergency dispatch number, 509-628-0333.