In an early morning incident yesterday, authorities were called to the Holiday Inn Express in Gladstone after a man allegedly assaulted an employee and attempted to steal items from the office. As reported by OregonLive, the confrontation occurred around 2:09 a.m., leading to a chase that ended in the Clackamas River.
Upon the arrival of the police, the suspect made a desperate attempt to evade capture. Running from the building, he jumped from a 15-foot bank into the icy waters below as the police were pursuing him. Following the jump, authorities lost sight of him. According to a statement detailed by KOIN, officers remarked, "Tragically, after an extensive search, the suspect was located deceased from an apparent drowning."
The subsequent search by search and rescue teams concluded with the discovery of the man's body in the river. Details concerning the incident continue to emerge, including the fact that the police initially encountered the suspect inside the hotel's kitchen area, whom they say fled on foot, leading to the fatal sequence of events. KPTV reports that the man, 29, has not yet been publicly identified pending notification of kin.
