WASHINGTON D.C., DC — The manhunt for a murder suspect continues 24 hours after he escaped police custody at George Washington University Hospital. The search for 30-year-old Christopher Haynes has expanded to Northern Virginia, where police say Haynes has family ties in Stafford, Fauquier, and Prince William Counties.
DC Police say Haynes, who has a long criminal record out of Prince William County including assault against an officer and impersonating an officer, was arrested on a warrant in Manassas Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. While on his way to being processed in D.C., he complained of ankle pain from a previous injury.
At 3 p.m., he was taken by an officer to George Washington University Hospital, which was an apparent break in protocol.
“Anytime we have an arrestee or suspect, especially someone wanted or a fugitive, it's usually a two-person transport to the hospital,” explained MPD Chief Pamela Smith. “And they remain with that suspect or arrestee throughout the duration of his or her hospital stay, and we conduct what's hospital detail."
Even though the two were met by a second officer, somehow the suspect found himself alone with one officer during the most critical stage when the handcuffs were removed. That’s reportedly when Haynes made his getaway. It was shortly after 3:30 p.m., just one hour after his initial arrest.
“We typically take one handcuff off and the arrestee is handcuffed to the gurney or bed he or she is sitting on,” the Chief said. “As he was taking one of the handcuffs off the suspect's arms, the suspect got up aggressively moved away from the officer, and fled the scene.”
“We will always find a protocol violation, I guarantee you, there's something wrong here. But let's remember still, how brave the officers are to move around a homicide suspect,” said Dale Sutherland a retired MPD Sergeant and founder of the non-profit Code 3. Sutherland retired 10 years ago.
“At that time, there was at DC General Hospital, we had what was called a strong room. So, we actually had jail cells in a whole portion of the hospital where we can hold multiple prisoners,” he recalled. “It allowed for more security and more safety for the officers and for the general public. And when you go to a civilian hospital, obviously, you're taking on a lot of risk.”
Sutherland said the multi-agency search could last days, but it's just a matter of timing.
“Generally speaking, guys go to their homes, to their families, to their friends. And all those things are usually easy to track,” said Sutherland. "He's in a harder position than any of the police. Think of this, you can imagine ‘Hide and Seek’ and having one person looking for you. Well, this is thousands, hundreds of guys, all looking for him.”
Police are offering a $25,000 reward for Haynes' capture. They said they also reached out to his alleged victim's family about the escape and warned anyone who sees him not to engage but to call 911 right away. He is described as a black man with shoulder-length dreadlocks, he has a Washington Nationals “W” tattoo on his neck and was last seen wearing a black shirt and gray pants.