Police say that have captured the escaped prisoner who broke out the back of a police cruiser and fled into a subway system Thursday evening in Lower Manhattan. The incident began around 7:45 p.m. when the suspect, believed to be in his 20s, was in the back of the cruiser following accusations that he had stolen from a nearby Gap store in TriBeCa, according to CBS New York.
Police were en route to the 1st Precinct station for booking when he managed to open the door, while still in handcuffs, and run into the Franklin Street No. 1 Train station at Franklin Street and West Broadway.
He was followed down to the platform, but he slipped into the tunnels, prompting police to launch a manhunt for the escaped suspect. As police searched for him, the entrance to the subway station was shut down. In addition, No. 1 trains were halted between 14th Street and South Ferry, while No. 2 and 3 train service was suspended between Times Square and Wall Street, according to NBC New York.
Police eventually managed to track down and arrest the suspect at a group home in Brooklyn around 12:30 a.m. - five hours after the incident began.
This incident marks the sixth time someone has managed to slip out of police custody since June, according to CBS New York.
On June 23, Tareek Arnold escaped from detectives in the 32nd Precinct in Harlem, but was captured about a month later. On July 24, Arthur Collins escaped from the 25th Precinct in East Harlem. On Aug. 16, Austin Stevenson escaped custody when he pushed his escorting officer as he was being led to the 23rd Precinct in East Harlem. On Aug. 30, Tiffany Neumann, who pretended to be pregnant, fled from a lower Manhattan hospital after breaking out of her handcuffs.
These three suspects were captured again with days of their initial arrest.
The most recent escape was on Oct. 20 when Gerald Brooks, who had five warrants and 54 past arrests, escaped police in Brooklyn when he pushed a police officer to the ground while he was being led to the 73rd Precinct and ran off.
NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton was particularly annoyed following October's escape: "They're an embarrassment to themselves, to the unit, to this department, and they're going to create a lot more work for this department as a result of their inefficiencies this morning," he said of the officers who saw Brooks escape.
"If the cops were just paying attention to their responsibilities, a lot of this stuff would stop," Bratton continued. "I'm very concerned when somebody with a pair of handcuffs, handcuffed behind them, can flee from three of my officers and they can't catch him. I'm sorry - there's something wrong there when that's happening, repeatedly, over and over again."
In the meantime, new charges are expected to be filed against the suspect.
