Fleeing pickup truck turns out to be mobile meth lab.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Police found the makings of a methamphetamine lab inside a pickup truck that led officers on a high-speed chase from Coburg to Eugene on Thursday.

Coburg police officer John Bosley stopped the truck in Coburg when he noticed that the driver wasn't wearing a seatbelt. Midway through the traffic stop, the driver jumped back in the truck and sped away, Coburg police Lt. Pat Smith said.

Bosley gave chase, and Oregon State Police and Lane County sheriff's deputies joined the pursuit on southbound Interstate 5 shortly after 7 p.m.

The fleeing driver took the Glenwood exit, drove south on Laurel Hill Road and hit a dead end near Moon Mountain in east Eugene, Smith said. He drove another 300 yards on a dirt utility road before his truck got trapped in brush.

The man bailed out and started running. Eugene police K-9 officer Terry Martin and his dog, Eeron, tracked the man to a thicket of blackberry bushes, Smith said. When the man refused to come out, police released the dog, Smith said.

A subsequent search of the truck turned up evidence of an alleged meth lab, police said.

Timothy Peterson of the Grants Pass area was being treated for dog bites at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Eugene. His age was not available. He was being held on an outstanding warrant and will likely face additional charges stemming from the pursuit, Smith said.