Couple caught after police hunt

They are found with six firearms after a standoff forced an 11-hour closure of I-15.

A man and woman were arrested Saturday after they triggered an 11-hour closure of Interstate 15 north of Baker by shooting at police officers, authorities said.

Sean Winter, 34, of Nevada, and Samantha Ross-Blume, 22, of Minnesota, were taken into custody after evading capture Friday during a standoff with the California Highway Patrol. The couple, along with a cache of six firearms, were found in an abandoned car on a ranch on Cima Road, near I-15, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff ’s Department.

CHP officers and members of the sheriff’s SWAT team surrounded the ranch and began searching the property.

“As deputies in the armored rescue vehicle approached what appeared to be an unoccupied vehicle, two subjects were observed sleeping,” the Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

Deputies made an announcement over a loudspeaker and woke up the pair. Winter reached for an object but dropped it when he saw the armored vehicle, authorities said.

Winter and Ross-Blume surrendered and were turned over to the CHP.

Police found six firearms in the vehicle, the Sheriff ’s Department said.

The couple were suspected of leading the CHP on a pursuit early Friday that began when an officer tried to stop a motorist driving at excessive speeds north of Baker, said Officer Adam Carmichall, the CHP spokesman in Barstow.

At least one shot, possibly from an AK-47, was fired at two CHP officers during the pursuit, authorities said.

Shortly after the chase began, the driver’s vehicle became disabled in the center divider of the highway near Halloran Summit Road, just south of Primm, Nev., he said. When the driver did not respond to officers’ commands, authorities closed the freeway.

After a seven-hour standoff, officers approached the vehicle and discovered it was empty. The freeway remained closed for nearly four more hours as authorities searched the surrounding area for the suspects.