Countywide : Accused Drug Dealer Leads Freeway Chase

An Oxnard man, surprised by undercover officers during an alleged drug deal in Ventura on Wednesday, rammed a sheriff’s car and led detectives on a 110-m.p.h. freeway chase before his capture, authorities said.

Ricky Lee Bailey, 29, was arrested after he ditched his car off the Ojai Freeway in Foster Park and tried to hide in a bamboo thicket, said Ventura County Sheriff’s Sgt. Arnie Aviles.

Bailey surrendered when a police dog found him, Aviles said.

The incident began just after 5 p.m. when detectives who were tailing Bailey said they saw him sell drugs to another man in a parking lot near Main Street and Mills Road, Aviles said.

When the undercover detectives drove into the parking lot, blocking Bailey’s exit, he drove his car into the squad car, narrowly missing Detective Jim Popp, who was on foot, police said.

After ramming the police car, Bailey entered the Ventura Freeway, which was crowded at rush hour, and weaved around traffic before driving north on the Ojai Freeway, Aviles said.

The chase was joined by sheriff’s and CHP patrol units and ended when Bailey skidded his car to a halt on the shoulder, jumped out and ran into the brush.

“It was an extremely dangerous chase,” Aviles said. “He was forcing cars off the road like a maniac.”

Officers recovered $5,000 in cash from a Ventura residence where Bailey’s girlfriend lives. In the area where Bailey hid, they recovered 3.5 grams of methamphetamine and Bailey’s pager, Aviles said.

On parole after a previous drug conviction, Bailey is being held in Ventura County Jail on suspicion of possession of drugs for sale, transporting drugs, assault with a deadly weapon and evading arrest.

Police also arrested the man who allegedly purchased a small amount of drugs from Bailey. Jeffrey Weldon Lane, 23, of Camarillo was arrested on suspicion of possession of methamphetamine. Officers recovered a sixteenth of an ounce of the drug, Aviles said.