A Redding man is behind bars after police say he brandished a weapon at officers and fled into the Sacramento River south of town in an attempt to evade capture.
John Wilkinson, 48, grabbed a sharpened stick when he was confronted by Redding Police officers in the parking lot of the Hilton Garden Inn shortly before 4 a.m. this morning, according to the department. Officers were responding to reports of a man trying to go through vehicles in the hotel's parking lot, which is located on Bechelli Lane near Inerstate 5 in south Redding.
Wilkinson, who was on Assembly Bill 109 supervision, told officers they would have to kill him before he would return to jail before fleeing west away from hotel, said RPD officials.
He ran toward the river, tripping and falling down an embankment before entering the water with police still in pursuit. Wilkinson eventually exited the river and headed back up an embankment, at which point police unleashed canine Carr and used batons to place him under arrest.
Wilkinson allegedly kicked the police dog several times in the face before being apprehended, according to police. He was cleared by doctors and booked into the Shasta County Jail for suspicion of brandishing a weapon at a police officer, resisting a peace officer and battering a police dog.
Canine Carr appeared to survive the altercation relatively unscathed and will undergo a medical examination at a later time, police said.
Copyright 2014 - Redding Record Searchlight, Calif.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
