Fugitive Hid In Pipes In Jessup During 6-Day Run: Police Chief

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — The fugitive who escaped from police custody in the parking lot of Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center Friday never left the woods near the psychiatric facility, police said.

David Watson, 28, was found Wednesday night after a six-day search, hiding inside a drainage pipe approximately half a mile from the hospital parking lot, officials reported.

"He was laying there, face-front, when officers spotted him," Howard County Police Chief Gary Gardner said.

Watson had been serving a more than 100-year sentence for trying to kill police officers in Delaware.

He had been transported from the Wicomico County Detention Center to Jessup for a mental evaluation on Friday. When a guard opened the van door in the hospital parking lot to let him out, Watson allegedly pushed the Wicomico County officer to the ground then ran into nearby woods.

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Investigators believe he neither planned the escape nor received outside assistance.

"Based on our conversations...we believe this is something that evolved during that transport," Gardner said. While in the police van, Watson removed the restraints he had been wearing, Gardner added.

Once he was on the run, Watson took clothing from a nearby storage building, Gardner said. A hard hat and vest were missing but were not recovered, according to police.

Search teams determined Watson continued moving throughout the wooded area and drainage pipe system during the six days he was at large.

He used various materials for "bedding down" in the area and had been eating out of trash cans and drinking water from puddles, according to Gardner.

During his time on the lam, the inmate traveled at least a mile in three different directions, Gardner said.

A breakthrough in the case came Wednesday morning in the form of a tip. It was the first possible sighting of the escaped convict, according to police.

A worker in the 8200 block of Dorsey Run Road reported seeing a man wearing a white hard hat and safety vest around 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday who allegedly ran when spotted, according to police.

Helicopters, bloodhounds, K-9 units and tactical teams combed the area. The Howard County Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Maryland State Police, Anne Arundel County Police Department, Howard County Sheriff’s Office, Natural Resources Police and CSX Police participated in Wednesday's area checks, which police said involved searching and rechecking the terrain. In fact, the location where Watson was ultimately found had already been searched on Wednesday.

"Although the pipe had been confirmed empty earlier in the day, officers with night vision equipment rechecked the area after dark," police said Wednesday evening. "They found Watson laying inside, attempting to hide."

After a six-day search, authorities said they apprehended Watson, who had minor scrapes.

Upon being taken into custody Wednesday night, Watson was cooperative, according to Gardner. The fugitive was charged with escape and assault, police said.

Once his bail review is compete, Watson will be transferred to a maximum-security facility in Delaware, Gardner said.

The person who called in the tip Wednesday morning to report a possible sighting near the business in the 8200 block of Dorsey Run Road will be eligible for a reward. Earlier in the week, the Howard County Police Department and U.S. Marshals Service offered $10,000 for information about Watson.

According to Gardner, there will be an internal investigation to look into the issues around the transport.

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Photos courtesy of the Howard County Police Department.