Thurston Co. suspect escapes patrol car while handcuffed, leading to multi-hour manhunt
Oct 7, 2026, 6:20 AM
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
On Oct. 6, the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office found a man hiding under a porch who had escaped handcuffed from a patrol car, prompting an hours-long manhunt for him.
Earlier in the day, deputies responded to the Black Lake area for a domestic violence order violation with a burglary in progress.
Sheriff Derek Sanders said the suspect initially refused to come outside, but eventually surrendered and was handcuffed and put in the back of a patrol car.
When deputies were waiting on scene for the victim, the suspect apparently moved his handcuffs to the front of his body and was able to pry the interior door panel off the back of the patrol car. According to Sanders, he used the metal handcuffs to short out the disabled window switch, which rolled the window down.
“This patrol car was an older vehicle in the fleet and was not equipped with window bars,” Sanders explained on Facebook.
The suspect ran off while handcuffed, which started an hours-long manhunt.
During that time, Sanders said the suspect burglarized a second home, where he stole tools and clothes.
A homeowner fired a gunshot to get the attention of deputies before pointing them in the direction of where the suspect ran off.
After a short track, K9 Mac located the suspect under a porch. The suspect had a pair of pliers stuck to the handcuffs when he was recaptured, Sanders said.
He was booked into Thurston County Jail for violation of a protection order DV, residential burglary DV, malicious mischief for damaging the patrol car, and second-degree escape.
“Never in my career have I ever heard of a suspect hot-wiring a disabled window switch with their metal handcuffs; however, this is a great example as to why the decision was made in 2023 to invest money into our patrol car fleet. All of our patrol vehicles come with window bars now,” Sanders noted.
