Stanislaus County, California (SCSO) — On Friday, September 22nd 2023, at 3:45 p.m., deputies investigated a home burglary in the 3500 block of West Keyes Road in Keyes, where a handgun was stolen. At 5:31 p.m., a citizen in the 5100 block of Muncy Road in Modesto reported being carjacked at gunpoint by a male adult, later determined to be 43-year-old Jason Dingler, who stole the man’s pickup truck. 6 minutes after the carjacking, at 5:37 p.m., an employee of the One Stop Market in the city Grayson reported a male with a gun stole from the store. The man was described the same as the one from the carjacking minutes earlier. He was also later identified as Dingler. A California Highway Patrol officer located the stolen truck traveling south on Highway 33 at 5:44 p.m. After multiple deputies arrived to assist with stopping the vehicle being driven by Dingler, he failed to pull over, leading them on a pursuit. With Air101, the Sheriff’s Office helicopter, overhead, Dingler continued fleeing from deputies on Highway 33, reaching speeds up to 95 MPH.
During the pursuit, at 5:59 p.m., Dingler sideswiped another car as he passed it, causing his vehicle to leave the roadway and crash at the edge of an orchard. He exited the truck and fled on foot into the same orchard, where he shot at deputies multiple times. Air101 provided updates to deputies on the ground as Dingler moved through the orchard, including laying on the ground, shooting at deputies again and striking a patrol car. For the next several minutes, he could be seen with a gun in his hand and began moving closer to where the deputies were. At 6:26 p.m., Dingler was approaching deputies, at which time two discharged their firearms at least one time each. Dingler was struck by at least one bullet and fell to the ground. Deputies gave him multiple commands, but he was uncooperative and still had a gun within his reach. As additional safety equipment arrived at the scene, including armored vehicles, deputies were able to approach Dingler and take him into custody at 6:47 p.m. They immediately began providing him medical treatment until he could be transported to a hospital by a nearby waiting ambulance. He survived his gunshot wound(s) and is in stable condition in the Intensive Care Unit.
The firearm used by Dingler to shoot at deputies was recovered from the orchard. It is the same as the handgun stolen in the earlier burglary and believed to be the same used in the carjacking and robbery at the market. The Major Crimes Unit, Stanislaus County District Attorney Office, and administrative investigators responded to the scene. It is standard for both criminal and administrative investigations to be conducted at the same time when an officer-involved shooting occurs. No deputies or other assisting law enforcement were injured in the incident. The driver of the sideswiped vehicle complained of pain from the accident but declined to be treated at the time. As related to each incident listed, 43-year-old Dingler is arrested for the following crimes: Residential Burglary: Burglary Carjacking: Carjacking, Kidnapping, Burglary, Assault with a Deadly Weapon Robbery: Robbery, Brandishing a Firearm Pursuit: Evading a Peace Officer, Hit and Run, Possession of a Stolen Vehicle Attempted Murder: Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Prohibited Person in Possession of Ammunition, Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm, Attempted Murder.
