Suspect in Humboldt County double killing arrested
EUREKA — A man who fled after allegedly killing two people and wounding two more in a Northern California home was arrested Wednesday after a high-speed car chase, authorities said.
Russell Albers, 41, was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon after he was spotted in McKinleyville and drove off in a Toyota Tundra, the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
Deputies chased him on Interstate 101 to Arcata and through Trinidad, reaching speeds of 100 mph and sometimes driving the wrong way in traffic before a California Highway Patrol pushed his car off the road, authorities said.
However, the car continued on the freeway shoulder until a sheriff's patrol car struck and immobilized the vehicle, the Sheriff's Office said.
Albers was sought in connection with a shooting on Tuesday that killed a man and woman at a home in Eureka, a coastal city more than 250 miles (402.34 kilometers) north of San Francisco.
The victims were the parents of a 4-year-old child, who was rescued unharmed after deputies were summoned to the home by a 911 call during which the child's screams were heard in the background, the Sheriff's Office said.
Another woman was taken to the hospital for emergency surgery and Albers allegedly dropped off a third woman at the hospital, where she had surgery for a gunshot wound, authorities said.
Albers then fled the hospital, authorities said.
Authorities haven't released a motive for the shootings or described Albers' relationship to the victims.
After his capture, Albers was booked into jail on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and child endangerment, authorities said.
It wasn't immediately clear whether he had an attorney to speak on his behalf.
Albers previously was booked into the Humboldt County jail on Oct. 30 on suspicion of battery against a spouse or co-habitant but the status of that case and details of the arrest weren't immediately available.