Teenage driver arrested after Petaluma sideshow, high-speed chase across southern Sonoma County

A Rohnert Park man suspected of starting a sideshow in southeast Petaluma on Saturday night led police on a high-speed chase across southern Sonoma County before he was arrested in Cotati, according to Petaluma police.

Ty Kumre, 18, who was driving a modified Ford Mustang, reached speeds over 100 mph as he fled on Adobe Road, Lakeville Highway and through Penngrove, where authorities paused their pursuit for safety, the Petaluma Police Department said in a statement.

The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol and a CHP helicopter were assisting in the area when a sheriff’s deputy spotted Kumre and his 16-year-old juvenile passenger in Cotati, police said.

Authorities stopped the car and detained Kumre without incident.

Petaluma police officers initially attempted a traffic stop just before midnight when Kumre was seen doing donut maneuvers in front of a crowd that had gathered in a residential neighborhood off Frates Road.

Kumre was arrested on suspicion of felony evading, speeding and child abuse since his passenger was a juvenile. The passenger was released to a parent, police said.

You can reach Staff Writer Yousef Baig at 707-521-5390 or yousef.baig@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @YousefBaig.