Say you’re out and about in your Buick Regal. It’s stolen, but why let that stop you from taking a little morning post-July-4th cruise? You’re also under the influence of intoxicants—a separate very bad, no-good idea. Suddenly, out of nowhere, your rolling cocktail of felonies comes to a screeching halt when a Toyota Land Cruiser slams into your pilfered Buick. Ruh-roh. If this sounds implausible, well, truth is stranger than fiction—and this story, which is true, is only just warming up.
You see, according to the Newberg-Dundee police department out of Oregon, the Toyota Land Cruiser that collided with the stolen Buick was also stolen. The Toyota also was fleeing police at the time, who had attempted to stop the Land Cruiser shortly after it was reported stolen and spotted driving through town. They say crime doesn’t solve itself, but in this case, sort of?
Randy Lee Cooper, 27-year-old resident of Portland, Oregon, was arrested at the scene for his theft of the Toyota Land Cruiser and the ensuing police chase. His crimes, per the Newberg-Dundee police, include “unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, attempting to elude police, assault-3, reckless driving, and other related crimes.” What, no credit for helping solve the three-week-old car-theft case involving the Buick Regal? Apparently not. Kristin Nicole Begue, 25-year-old resident of Newberg, was booked on charges of DUI and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
We couldn’t summarize the whole shebang any better than the Newberg-Dundee police in its lead-off for the press release for it all: “Here’s a new one for you to start the week.” We should add, of course, that you should not steal cars, drink and drive, do both, or do both and hit other car thieves (or anyone else).
