A Patterson teenager who was caught by police riding a dirt bike without a helmet and a license plate on June 8 only made matters worse for his self when he tried to flee but was later caught.

Officer Jesus Salinas was patrolling the area of Hackett Road near Malik Avenue at 4:30 p.m. when he spotted the violations. When Salinas activated his emergency lights and siren, rider Julian Lopez, 18, of Patterson, accelerated and turned southbound on Esteban Avenue and then westbound on Bria Drive. The short pursuit ended when Lopez turned southbound onto Alexis Avenue, which dead ends. As Lopez made a U-turn to flee, Officer Salinas blocked his path with the patrol car. The officer jumped out of his patrol car and ordered Lopez to get off of the motorcycle and lay on the ground. Lopez complied and was arrested.

When asked why he ran, Lopez said he was scared and decided to see if he could get away. Lopez was cited for misdemeanor charges of evading a peace officer and for being an unlicensed driver.