A Terrebonne man suspected of setting a shed on fire before jumping a fence into a popular alpaca ranch and stealing a car was arrested Monday.
The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office said it started with a report just before 5:00 p.m. of a fire in the 1400 block of E. Avenue. DCSO said the initial reports described a man starting a fire in a shed, followed by a large explosion sound and smoke emerging from the shed.
When deputies arrived there, a second person called 911 to report a man was at the Ace Hardware store with no shoes and rambling incoherently.
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DCSO said that someone reported a short time later the same man had jumped the fence at Crescent Moon Ranch along Highway 97. The ranch called 911 and said the man had stolen a ranch vehicle and was driving recklessly through the fields. He allegedly crashed into fences, a gate and then got back in Highway 97.
It was later found the man had driven the stolen vehicle back to the shed fire.
DCSO Deputy Witherspoon and K-9 Vinnie helped take the man into custody.
The suspect, identified as Christopher Valentin Van Wambeke Ward, 35, was taken to the Deschutes County Jail on multiple charges including DUII and six counts of recklessly endangering another person.
