Dramatic Family Dispute and Pursuit in Amador County Leads to Arrest of Convicted Felon
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On July 24, 2023, a tense family dispute in the quiet neighborhood of Pioneer, Amador County, escalated into a high-speed pursuit after a convicted felon, Kenneth Ahart, 43, engaged in a physical altercation with his 17-year-old son. The Amador County Sheriff’s Office swiftly responded to the incident, prompting a dramatic chain of events that ultimately resulted in Ahart’s arrest.
The authorities received a distress call reporting the altercation between Ahart and his teenage son at a residence on Salt Springs Road. Before the deputies arrived at the scene, Ahart and his son fled in a black truck. The deputies later spotted the vehicle and attempted to stop it, but Ahart disregarded their commands and initiated a dangerous pursuit.
During the chase, Ahart continued to evade law enforcement’s attempts to bring him to a halt. Tragically, he crashed his truck into a Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle, targeting the driver’s side door where a brave deputy was positioned. Fortunately, the deputy managed to escape unharmed, but the reckless incident further intensified the authorities’ determination to apprehend the suspect.
As the search for Ahart unfolded, new information emerged that heightened concerns for the safety of both the public and law enforcement officers. Authorities discovered that Ahart was in possession of multiple firearms, raising red flags as he was a convicted felon, which made him ineligible to own any firearms.
Fueled by the urgency to prevent further potential harm, members of the Amador County Sheriff’s Office Investigation Bureau promptly secured a search warrant for Ahart’s trailer. The subsequent search of his property yielded a shocking discovery— a total of 13 firearms were seized by the deputies.
The manhunt for Ahart continued, with deputies and the California Highway Patrol joining forces to comb the area for any sign of the dangerous suspect. Their exhaustive efforts eventually paid off when Ahart was located in the vicinity. Law enforcement personnel apprehended him without further incident, effectively ending the immediate threat posed by his actions.
Following his capture, Ahart was taken into custody and booked at the Amador County Jail, facing a laundry list of charges. The charges levied against him included Child Abuse for his altercation with his son, Assault with a Deadly Weapon on a Peace Officer for crashing into the patrol vehicle, Evading for leading the authorities on the dangerous pursuit, and Felon in Possession of a Firearm for unlawfully possessing multiple firearms.
