Cedar Rapids and Hiawatha police were flummoxed Wednesday afternoon by a wanted felon who jumped from a moving vehicle near Nixon Elementary. The man, known only as a local carpet installer, is wanted for felony assault with a deadly weapon.
Upon being confronted at his place of employment he fled and evaded capture thanks to the efforts of a few good samaritans. Police say they lost sight of the felon in the neighborhoods between Council St. and Robbins Rd NE. Several neighbors stated they saw the man jumping fences before disappearing into a home.
“That bpy came ’round the corner lookin’ real scared,” said Asbury St. resident Paul Nickolowski. “He was breaking apart his phone and stashing the parts in his pocket as he ran. I pointed him towards safety before the police could gun him down in the street.”
The carpet installer remains at large and should be considered armed and dangerous. A warrant was issued for his arrest following a fifth attempt to stab his wife with a gator-back knife. The previous four stabbings were summarily dismissed by Cedar Rapids district courts.
The mystery at the time of this writing is how the felon escaped and who helped him do so.
“We know exactyl who helped him and how, but we can’t prove anything,” said a Cedar RApids police spokesman.
Police suspect the carpet installer was aided and abetted by a Des Moines man who caught sight of the chase from the back deck of a friend’s house.
A call was later traced to the address and evidence of the felon’s presence was found. Still, without a proper search warrant, police were handcuffed (pun intended) by uncooperative citizens, fully knowledgeable of seach and seizure laws in the United States.
“The hard part is all these jailhouse lawyers sitting on their little computers, reading up on the constitution and their rights. It really makes our job as peace officers very difficult,” said Hiawatha Police Chief Blaine Reynolds.
“If I had it my way, the incicidents in Louisiana and Minnesota would be precedent for how we react to violent poor people here in Iowa. These people need to be shot and they need to be shot for no reason.”
Authorities were denied across to a full tear down search of the residence in question and left the scene baffled and frusturated.
Late reports at our news desk indicate witnesses saw the carpet installer signing karaoke and drinking beer at a Cedar Rapids night spot around 11 pm. Police, again, were too slow to respond as the man escaped in the back of an unmarked van.
Anyone with knowledge of the suspects whereabouts are currently under survielence.