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Robbery suspect arrested By PETER WONG A would-be robber in Medford made off with a doghouse Monday, but police made sure he ended up in the jailhouse. Police arrested a suspect in two attempted robberies after he sped out of the city and officers caught up with him on Interstate 5 south of Rogue River. Police identified the suspect as Daniel Ray Rucker, 42, of 2315 Jasmine Ave., Medford. He was arrested on two charges of attempted second-degree robbery and three charges of three-degree theft. He was lodged on $13,000 bail in the Jackson County Jail, which listed his address on East Main Street. Lt. Tom Lavine said the chain of events began when police received a report of an attempted robbery at 7:48 a.m. at Minute Market, 1399 Stewart Ave. Police took a description of the robber but said no vehicle was seen or heard. "Either before or after he tried to rob Minute Market -- I don't know when he did it -- he went next-door to the pet mart, stole a wooden doghouse, and left," Lavine said. Mini Pet Mart is at 1385 Stewart Ave. Lavine said police received a report of a second robbery attempt at 8:04 a.m. at Rose Grocery, 201 W. Jackson St. Lavine said the description of the robber was "extremely close" to that involved in the earlier attempt. Barely 20 minutes later, while officers were searching for the robber, police received a report of a theft of gasoline from the Chevron station at 785 Stewart Ave. Lavine said the description of the thief matched that of the person in the two robberies, and police also got a description of the getaway pickup truck. Ten minutes later, a Medford police detective spotted the pickup truck on McAndrews Road near Biddle Road but was unable to get to it. Four minutes later, officer Mike Miles spotted the pickup racing north from Biddle Road onto Interstate 5. Other patrol cars joined the pursuit and stopped the driver at about 8:50 a.m. just south of Rogue River. Lavine said police stopped northbound traffic on I-5 for a few moments, but Rucker offered no resistance, and traffic flow resumed once the pickup was moved out of the way. "He is going to need that doghouse," Lavine said. "He must have thought it was Free Monday." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA