A week-long, two-county pursuit of a suspect of assault, arson and felony harassment has citizens on alert for about a day, before he was finally apprehended in his hometown of Sequim.

On Dec. 28, law enforcement asked that any residents, or anyone passing through the area of Old Gardiner Road, near the bridge, report anything that seemed suspicious, as they attempted to locate the suspect, who’d fled across both Clallam and Jefferson counties.

According to public statements issued by the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, its deputies were dispatched on Dec. 23 to respond to a report of an assault in Sequim, and as a result of their investigation, they issued probable cause for the arrest of 40-year-old David R. Burgess for assault in the second degree, due to domestic violence, and for felony harassment, including threats to kill.

Although Clallam County Sheriff’s Deputies were unable to locate Burgess at that time, after he’d fled the scene, a subsequent report of an arson in Sequim on Dec. 27 led them to receive witness statements that Burgess had set a house on fire, while it was occupied, along with setting fire to a vehicle outside the residence, before he fled again, into the woods. The occupant of the house escaped the residence unharmed, but first responders found the house fully engulfed in flames.

The Clallam County and Jefferson County sheriffs’ offices jointly attempted to apprehend Burgess, utilizing K-9 trackers and heat-sensing drone technology, but couldn’t locate him through those means.

Burgess was next seen heading southbound on Palo Alto Road, fleeing from deputies in a stolen Mazda 6, at approximately 6 a.m. on Dec. 28, but by 8:15 a.m. on Dec. 28, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office received confirmation that the vehicle had been abandoned and missing a tire, and identified as the vehicle stolen by Burgess by matching its license plate numbers, according to Jefferson County Detective Sgt. Brett Anglin.

“Pursuing deputies had lost sight of him on the backroads,” Anglin told The Leader. “We believe he then fled on foot.” At that time, Anglin announced that deputies would be in the area, and had asked the public to report any sightings or other information they might have had regarding Burgess’ whereabouts, by calling 911.

But by 7:58 p.m. on Dec. 28, a Clallam County Sheriff’s Deputy encountered Burgess riding a bicycle, again on Palo Alto Road in Sequim, and Burgess fled into the woods once more.

Burgess ultimately surrendered at taser-point, and was taken into custody and booked into the Clallam County Jail.