Police say charges are pending against a man who escaped from RCMP custody for about 20 minutes on Friday afternoon.
It happened around 2:30 p.m. when Mounties say the suspect was able to free one of his wrists from handcuffs and try to run away while he was being led to the north door of the Coaldale RCMP detachment on Stafford Drive South in downtown Lethbridge.
“The prisoner proceeded to a housing complex a few blocks away, where a relative resides,” the RCMP said in a news release Friday evening.
“He gained access into the complex. Lethbridge Police Service members were alerted and responded quickly to the area, assisting numerous RCMP members.”
Police say the man was eventually found barricaded in a washroom inside his relative’s apartment unit.
“Officers arrived on scene and were immediately confronted by the male who was now brandishing a knife and lunged at the officers on scene,” Lethbridge police said in a news release Friday afternoon.
A taser was deployed to subdue the suspect and he was taken into custody.
RCMP said the man was taken to hospital for assessment before being transferred to the Lethbridge Correctional Centre.
The man was initially in the custody of RCMP for alleged property crimes.
“An internal RCMP review of the prisoner escape will be conducted,” RCMP said.
“This incident is another excellent example of inter-agency cooperation between the Coaldale RCMP and Lethbridge Police Service members.”