A Portland, Oregon, man accused of hitting a police officer with a pickup truck on Christmas Eve escaped from his holding cell at the Portland Police Bureau on Saturday, police said.
David Dahlen, 24, allegedly struck Officer Jennifer Pierce with a stolen pickup truck and fled the scene before ditching the vehicle several miles away, KGW reported.
The pickup had reportedly been stolen from a Southeast Portland auto shop the Monday before the incident. KOIN reported that the stolen pickup rammed into the driver’s side of a marked squad car and pushed it forward before driving out of the gas station.
At some point during the encounter, Pierce fired her weapon. She suffered from a broken pelvis as a result of the incident.
Police located and arrested Dahlen around 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, following a short chase on foot.
Dahlen was arrested on warrants for multiple charges, including attempted first-degree murder, assaulting a public safety officer, and first-degree assault.
He was taken to the Justice Center to be interviewed and was placed in a holding cell. The Oregonian reported that detectives planned to question him about the police shooting and the December 24 pickup truck incident.
At 5:30 p.m., detectives noticed that he disappeared from his holding cell, which they claimed had been secure.
Authorities immediately placed the building on lockdown and confirmed Dahlen escaped the building.
He was last seen running northbound, wearing a green long-sleeved shirt, white tennis shoes, and blue jeans. Police said Dahlen, who is 5’8″ and weighs about 170 pounds, also had a “noticeable amount of dried mud” on his clothes.
Investigators are also working to find out how he escaped from his cell.
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