Video: Sonoma County Sheriff's helicopter chases fleeing motorcyclist

SANTA ROSA -- A suspect fleeing police on a motorcycle in Santa Rosa over the weekend was briefly able to evade officers until a helicopter from the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department pinpointed his location, leading to his arrest.

A post on the sheriff's department's Facebook page Tuesday said the incident unfolded Saturday afternoon at around 4:30 p.m. The crew on the department's "Henry-One" helicopter overheard police radio transmissions of officers chasing a motorcyclist and diverted the helicopter to assist.

The helicopter's onboard camera captured the motorcyclist escaping from pursuing officers by riding on a bicycle path adjacent to the SMART train tracks and around pedestrian barriers where police patrol cars could not follow. 

The helicopter followed as the motorcyclist rode across a pedestrian bridge connecting S. Davis St. with S. A St., subsequently directing police officers to his location. The pilot maneuvered into the motorcyclist's view to try to get him to stop, but the chase went on into Rohnert Park. According to the post, the motorcyclist tried to ride on the shoulder and dropped his motorcycle. Officers then took him into custody.

It was not clear why the motorcyclist was being chased.