ARTESIA — An Artesia man was charged with two felonies Monday after briefly slipping police custody before officers were able to make a clean arrest.
Just after 10:45 a.m. Monday, an Artesia Police Department (APD) officer was dispatched to the Abo Apartments in reference to a report of a woman screaming for help. The officer was able to hear the woman and, after locating the apartment, began attempting to kick open the door.
After a male inside the apartment said to “quit kicking the door,” police ordered repeatedly that the door be opened. It was not, and the officer was able to gain entry with one final kick.
Once inside, police made contact with a female subject and a male subject, later identified as 31-year-old Isaac Granado of Artesia. When Granado saw the officer, he began walking to the back of the apartment, refusing commands to return to the front.
The officer attempted to grab Granado’s arm but found himself unable to do so due to the presence of a “slippery lotion or oil” on the suspect’s body. According to the complaint, Granado was wearing only boxer shorts at the time.
After being ordered several more times to return to the front of the apartment, Granado complied, but when additional officers attempted to detain him by applying handcuffs, he refused to place his arms behind his back. Following repeated resistance, Granado was tased and subsequently placed under arrest for resisting, evading or obstructing an officer.
Granado was placed in the back of a patrol vehicle to await EMS evaluation. The complaint states that he continued to behave in a hostile manner toward EMS and police, who noted a heavy odor of alcohol emanating from his person.
As the initial officer on scene prepared to transport Granado to the Artesia Detention Center, it was noticed that he had slipped out of his seatbelt and maneuvered his arms to the front of his body. The officer stopped his patrol vehicle in order to re-restrain Granado, but once the rear door was open, Granado pushed the officer backward and made to exit the vehicle.
The officer grabbed him, but the slippery suspect was once again able to take advantage of the oily substance on his body, squirting away and fleeing east through the Abo Apartments complex. Granado ignored commands to stop running and jumped a fence before falling to the ground.
The officer attempted to tase him but missed, and Granado continued north toward the 900 block of Lolita Avenue, where police lost sight of him. Approximately one hour later, a Community Service Officer was approached by a man who reported having seen a handcuffed, boxer-clad male in the 1000 block of North Sixth Street.
Police made contact with the suspect’s mother, who stated he was at her residence and provided entry to her home. Police met Granado in the bathroom as he stepped out of the shower, returning his handcuffs to the proper position and transporting him to the Artesia Detention Center without further incident.
Granado was charged with two counts of misdemeanor resisting, evading or obstructing an officer and felony counts of escape from the custody of a peace officer and battery upon a peace officer. He posted a $10,000 bond and is scheduled to appear for preliminary examination at 2 p.m. Aug. 23 before Judge Jimmy C. Foster in Artesia Magistrate Court.