A suspect arrested in connection with a deadly hostage incident at a California park in April escaped custody Sunday, authorities said.
Eric Abril, 35, is accused of shooting and wounding a Highway Patrol officer in Mahany Park and taking two bystanders hostage, fatally shooting one and wounding the other, the police.
Abril escaped from Sutter Roseville Medical Center early Sunday. The Placer County Sheriff’s Office and the Roseville Police Department are searching the easternmost area of Roseville.
Officials did not clarify why Abril was at the medical center.
Mahany Park in Roseville, CaliforniaGoogle Maps
“We have developed new information that reveals Abril was last seen on video surveillance walking in the area of Rainier Court in Rocklin at 3:39 a.m., then heading north a few minutes later on Saddletree Lane,” he said the sheriff’s office in a statement.
Officials describe Abril as “a six-foot-tall white male with brown hair, weighing 175 pounds,” who was last seen wearing an orange jumpsuit at the jail. In an update, the sheriff’s office said Abril was shirtless and was not shackled around the waist, but is believed to be wearing orange prison pants.
The sheriff’s office encourages anyone with information to help find him to come forward.
“We ask the immediate public to use extreme caution and call 911 immediately if Abril is seen,” he said.
The shooting erupted in Mahany Park around 12:30 a.m. on April 6, when California Highway Patrol officers attempted to serve a search warrant on a man as part of a felony investigation, the Highway Patrol said. Roseville police later identified the man as Abril.
The suspect ran and fired at Highway Patrol officers and “an officer-involved shooting ensued” as the gunman ran into a green belt area, the Highway Patrol alleged in a statement on Friday.
April meant to take the two people hostage, officials alleged. The hostages were later identified as a married couple.
James MacEgan of Roseville was killed and his spouse was shot. said the police.
Abril was arrested and charged with murder and attempted murder, along with several other related charges, officials said.
It was unclear if he has legal representation.
Erick Mendoza contributed.
