Police: Monroe man took wife, law enforcement on high-speed pursuit

Monroe resident Rene Fabian Carmona Ruiz told law enforcement he had wanted to be killed by police following his arrest Sunday after a high-speed chase down U.S. Highway 2.

The 38-year-old is suspected of being high on meth at the time. Ruiz had allegedly held a knife to his wife's throat while she called 911 from the vehicle he was driving eastbound, according to probable cause documents. The victim first made contact with dispatchers just after 5:30 p.m.

On the phone a woman screamed, “He's got a knife to my throat, I am in a car, I don't know where I am!” and a man yelling “Shut the f*** up!” could be heard, according to Sheriff's deputy Jeff Howerton's incident report. More calls rolled in, suggesting it was a potential robbery, and Ruiz was demanding money.

He was also assumed to be armed with a weapon resembling a box cutter, and was threatening or cutting his wife, who was bleeding, according to Howerton's report. Less than 10 minutes after the initial call was made, calls of the car driving into oncoming traffic began to come in.

Monroe Police officers helped sheriff's office deputies in the pursuit. Scanner audio making the rounds on social media offers glimpses into much of the chase. The recording picks up while law enforcement searched for the driver of the gray Ford around Gold Bar.

Responders tracked him down in an unincorporated community, according to Howerton's report. Ruiz then pulled into the eastbound lane of the highway, and alternated between the wrong lane and straddling the centerline.

“They just passed me going westbound on (Highway) 2 going into Startup,” an officer could be heard saying on the scanner. “They tried to take me head on.”

The couple has been married for 17 years, and has two daughters, according to Howerton's report.

At times during the pursuit, Ruiz was clocked at speeds close to 70 mph, as heard on the scanner feed. At times he was forced to slow down to around 50 mph. When tailing law enforcement tried to attempt a pursuit intervention technique ( PIT) to run him off the road, Ruiz would swerve toward the cars and hit his brakes, according to Howerton's report.

“Every time I get close to him, he swerves into the oncoming lane,” an officer is heard saying on the scanner.

Two attempts were made between Sultan and Monroe to stop the car with spikes, but both failed, according to Howerton's report. A third near Old Owen Road in east Monroe worked.

Ruiz then drove over the median into oncoming traffic again, according to Howerton's report. The scanner feed picked up visuals of the tires deflating, and finally a PIT was successful.

Ruiz still had a utility knife in his hand when officers took him into custody, according to Howerton's report. His wife had three cuts on her arm, and “reeked of gasoline.” He was booked into the Snohomish County Jail for second-degree assault, which is a Class B felony, according to probable cause documents. Pending charges also include harassment or threats to kill, which is a Class C felony, and attempt to elude a police vehicle, which is also a Class C felony.

Ruiz's wife told a sheriff's deputy her husband had told her he was going to kill her, according to Howerton's report, and took her to relatives to tell them goodbye. Earlier Sunday they went to a Texaco, bought gasoline, and Ruiz doused them both.

“He then held a lighter in his mouth as he was trying to close the gas can,” according to Howerton's report. “She was able to knock the lighter out of his mouth and break it.”

Ruiz admitted to the accusations, according to Howerton's report. He said he had planned to kill himself and his wife, but later said he had only wanted to kill himself. Ruiz also “changed his story” that he had fled from police because “he did not want to go to jail,” but instead because he wanted to be killed by them.

Ruiz has another case pending against him, according to court documents. He is believed to be a threat to the community if released.