NORTH COAST, Calif. – A Ukiah man wanted for allegedly shooting at a Mendocino County Sheriff's deputy in a Monday night incident has been arrested.
Walter Kristopher Miller, 42, was arrested following two and a half hours of negotiations with a law enforcement team after he was located at a Ukiah hotel on Wednesday, the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office reported.
Miller and 30-year-old Christopher Skaggs of Redwood Valley had allegedly been in a vehicle on Monday night that a deputy had attempted to stop, as Lake County News has reported.
Officials said the men led the deputy on a vehicle pursuit and, at one point, Miller – riding as the passenger – allegedly leaned out the window and shot several times at a distance of about 35 yards at the deputy's vehicle, causing the patrol vehicle to become inoperable.
Sheriff Tom Allman had said in a Tuesday news conference that the handgun used in the shooting was believed to have been stolen – along with two other handguns, a rifle and a shotgun – from a Potter Valley residence earlier that evening.
That night, the vehicle was found abandoned in the 6000 block of Highway 253. None of the guns were found at that time, officials said.
Skaggs was taken into custody on Tuesday morning after he was found on foot in the Ukiah area, Allman had reported.
At 11:30 a.m. Wednesday Mendocino County Sheriff's detectives received information that Miller was possibly occupying a room at the Best Western Orchard Inn in Ukiah, according to a Thursday report from Lt. Greg Van Patten.
Van Patten said sheriff's detectives conducted investigations into the information while members of the Mendocino Major Crimes Task Force and County of Mendocino Marijuana Eradication Team established surveillance on the hotel.
Approximately two hours later sheriff's detectives uncovered substantial information that showed Miller was currently occupying a room at the hotel, Van Patten reported.
A perimeter was established around the hotel with the assistance of personnel from the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, Ukiah Police Department, California Highway Patrol – officers and an agency helicopter – and Mendocino County District Attorney's Office, he said.
The Mendocino County Sheriff's Office SWAT team, comprised of personnel from the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office and Willits Police Department, were summoned to the scene, according to Van Patten.
Van Patten said the SWAT team was deployed to the inside of the hotel where the team then confined Miller to the room he was solely occupying on the second story.
Customers inside the hotel were evacuated to a safe location away from the hotel and nearby businesses were instructed to shelter in place, he said.
The city of Ukiah Fire Department in addition to the city of Ukiah Ambulance service and Ukiah Ambulance service were summoned to the area to stand by in the event of a medical emergency, Van Patten reported.
Personnel from the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office Crisis Negotiation Team were summoned to the hotel in an attempt to contact Miller, Van Patten said. Prior to their arrival a sheriff's detective established telephone communications with Miller and began to negotiate his peaceful surrender.
During the approximately two-and-a-half-hour negotiation process Miller expressed a desire to surrender to his parole agent from the Division of Adult Parole Operations with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Van Patten said.
As the parole agent was arriving at the hotel Miller exited the room and surrendered himself to members of the SWAT team, according to Van Patten.
Van Patten said sheriff's detectives conducted a search of the hotel room pursuant to a search warrant and seized an AP 9 millimeter machine pistol with two loaded high capacity magazines – one with a 20 round magazine, the other with a 30 round magazine.
Sheriff's detectives determined this was one of the firearms stolen from the Van Arsdale Road residence in Potter Valley on Monday and was the firearm believed to be used during the attempted murder of the Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputy on that same day, Van Patten said.
Miller was transported to the Mendocino County Jail where he was booked on charges of attempted murder, illegally possessing a firearm, burglary, possessing stolen property, conspiracy and parole violation, Van Patten said. Miller is currently being held on a no bail status.