Wenatchee Pastor, Wife Injured in DUI Collision Near Wells Dam

An elderly couple has injuries following a two-vehicle collision near Wells Dam, less than 10 miles south of rural Pateros.

At around 3 p.m. on Saturday, troopers say 34-year-old Andres Perez, of Bridgeport, was northbound on SR 97. He crossed the center lane and struck 71-year-old Gary Beck, of Wenatchee. (Beck appears to be a long-serving Christian pastor and law enforcement chaplain.) Both came to rest fully blocking SR 97.

Beck sustained injuries, as did his wife and passenger, 78-year-old Fukuko Beck (née Mitsuhara), also of Wenatchee. The couple was treated at Lake Chelan Community Hospital.

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Everyone involved reportedly had their seatbelts fastened.

Per the Washington State Patrol, Perez was inebriated at the time of the collision. Little else is known definitively; the cause of the crash remains under investigation.