Belleview, IL - Handcuffed Suspect Of Stolen Car Ring Steals Police Car - Chase Into St. Louis Co. - School Lockdowns - Still loose

Suspect Steals Police Car, Still On The Loose
Last Edited: Wednesday, 21 Jan 2009, 10:48 PM CST
Fox 2

Police suspended a manhunt in North St. Louis County after about 5 hours Wednesday night.

They were hoping the public could help them bring it to an end for good.

The search started around 2:15 p.m. in the Spanish Lake area at the Raintree Apartment complex near Interstate 270 and Lilac.

A suspect in a stolen car ring allegedly stole one from police, while still in handcuffs in Wood River, Illinois, then drove to North County to escape.

Police identified the suspect of 21 year old Derek Union, a.k.a. Derek Williams.

Police did not believe he had a weapon.

But that was of little comfort to the people who lived in the area Wednesday night.

"Oh my God … where's my son," said one mother upon hearing the news.

Police swarmed the area just as schools were letting out. One school went on a temporary lock-down. Students were not allowed to leave.

"My God," another woman cried.

"Some of the citizens, adjacent to the wooded area saw him running while handcuffed," said Gary Brewer of the Metro East Auto Task Force.

"Oh my Jesus, have mercy !" that woman cried again, too frightened to give her name.

Brewer said police first arrested union in Alton, on a St. Louis County warrant for vehicle tampering; Union was providing the task force with information about a stolen car ring - even directing an officer to Wood River to show him vehicles used in the ring.

"When the officer got out to photograph the cars he pointed out, that's when he brought his cuffs around," Brewer said.

He said Union's slight build at 5'6", 130 lbs., worked to his advantage; enabling him to get his hands, which were cuffed behind his back, into a position where he could jump from the back seat into the front - and drive from Wood River to North County.

"He's a small framed gentleman, kind of wiry," Brewer said. "He had the ability to work the cuffs, he was cuffed from the rear. He had the ability to work the cuffs downward to pull his feet through his hands."

"It's scary to me," that woman cried again.
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