Neko Antonio Ortiz, 33, from Ridgecrest was caught on Friday, April 4, after a high-speed chase with local police. This was his second arrest in three weeks after he ran away from police.
The Ridgecrest Police Department said that around 4 p.m., Corporal Arnold tried to stop Ortiz, who was known to have a suspended driver’s license, but Ortiz did not stop, starting a chase that went over 100 miles per hour.
Sergeant Groves and Corporal Pietrangelo joined the chase, which went through Ridgecrest until Ortiz’s car broke down. Ortiz then ran away on foot, but police quickly caught him and took him into jail without any more trouble.
This is Ortiz’s second try to get away from the police in the past few weeks.
Police say that Ortiz led Sergeant Groves and Officer Quiroz on another high-speed chase on March 14, 2025, after failing to yield during a traffic stop. He was caught after a foot chase, and police found a loaded gun on him at the time.
Ortiz was free on bail for the incident on March 14 when he got into the most recent chase.
He is being charged with many things, such as evading police while disregarding public safety, driving the wrong way, having a controlled drug with priors, and driving while his licence is suspended.
