ELYRIA, Ohio — A man’s escape from police custody has become a multi-day search in Elyria.
Investigators say Donte Parker II was handcuffed when he ran from officers Monday evening. He was last spotted on security footage running along a steep, wooded area near the Black River, but it’s unclear what happened after that point.
“Despite their extensive efforts that night to locate him, unfortunately, Mr. Parker did get away,” Elyria Police Capt. Bill Lantz told News 5 Thursday.
Lantz said officers responded to an apartment building on Washington Ave. around 8:45 p.m. Monday. A 911 caller had requested a welfare check because she suspected Parker was at the building and worried about previous accusations of violence.
The resident allowed officers to search the apartment when they arrived. They found Parker hiding under a bed with a gun beside him and arrested him on an outstanding warrant.
Body-worn camera footage released by police showed the 32-year-old handcuffed behind his back before he darted through the building entrance.
“We immediately established a perimeter in that area to search and locate Mr. Parker. We used a drone with thermal imaging capabilities and we requested K-9 units from some nearby agencies that also responded,” Lantz explained.
After being told Parker had not had contact with close relatives, investigators enlisted help from the Elyria Fire Department. On Tuesday and Wednesday, crews combed the steep ravine behind the apartment building and parts of the river. Lantz said they encountered challenges with icy conditions and paused the water search.
“We didn’t locate any evidence that Mr. Parker had entered the water or anything like that, nor did we locate him [Wednesday] as well,” he said.
He called the investigation ongoing and said the department planned to continue canvassing the area for surveillance cameras and using drones to search for Parker.
“Our primary effort at this point is focused towards getting Mr. Parker located and safely into custody,” he said.
On top of previous charges, Parker is also facing additional fleeing and weapons-related charges from Monday night.
Lantz said the department will review the incident to determine how Parker escaped custody and what the officers could have done differently.
