PLEASANT HILL — A 26-year-old Concord man led law enforcement officers on a pursuit before hiding in a clothing store and eventually escaping, police said.
The search for the man started with a helicopter pursuit about 6:05 p.m. Tuesday, Pleasant Hill police Lt. Matt Kristic said in a statement. It ended early Wednesday, when police determined he was no longer in the store.
The drama went down at the Nordstrom Rack in the 700 block of Contra Costa Boulevard, near the Sunvalley Shopping Center. Police said nobody was injured.
“It is believed he changed clothing and exited at some point in the initial moments of this incident,” Kristic’s statement said.
According to Kristic, the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office began the pursuit. The man was suspected of a rape and domestic violence incident in an undisclosed location, Kristic said.
The pursuit ended in the north parking lot of the shopping center, Kristic said. From there, the suspect fled a stolen vehicle and dashed into the store.
Police surrounded the store and evacuated it, Kristic said. Customers and employees also were escorted out of a nearby Safeway.
Kristic said the central county SWAT unit responded, along with a crisis negotiation team. Officers made many attempts to contact the suspect inside the store to no avail, Kristic said. The man also did not respond to any crisis negotiators.
Police used more than one drone, a police dog, a robot and SWAT members to search the store before determining the suspect was gone, Kristic said.
It was not known if the man had any weapons. Police did not release a description of the suspect.
Source: www.mercurynews.com