DICKINSON — A 40-minute manhunt for an auto-crimes suspect ended Thursday with a few beers and a dog bite.
The chase began at 3:40 p.m. in Dickinson when police spotted a wanted man riding a bicycle near state Highway 3 and 27th Street.
Investigator Shawn Lozica of the Galveston County Auto-Crimes Unit said the man crossed Highway 3, ditched his bike and ran into a wooded area in the 2600 block of Avenue F.
A hunt began with help from sheriff’s deputies and Dickinson and Texas City police.
“We called Texas City and got their dog in the woods and started to track him,” Lozica said. “They tracked him to the garage of a residence in the wooded area, where he had opened the door and drank a couple beers while we were searching for him.”
The police dog sniffed out the suspect, 18-year-old Brandon Peterson, Lozica said, at 4:20 p.m.
“The dog bit him and we were able to arrest him,” Lozica said. “He was checked out by emergency medical services but refused treatment. It was a very minor injury.”
Peterson faces a felony charge of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and other charges of evading arrest and criminal trespass. He was in the Galveston County Jail on Thursday in lieu of a $62,000 bond.
