Man Crawled 150 Feet Into Pipe To Avoid Fredericksburg Cops: Police

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — A man faces several charges after Fredericksburg police officers said he swam through a retention pond and crawled into a drainage pipe to evade arrest last week.

The man, 22-year-old Wadah Magoub, was arrested on Wednesday night. He is charged with obstructing justice, destruction of property, possession/distribution of a controlled substance, and trespassing.

Magoub is being held without bond at the Rappahannock Regional Jail. His next court date is scheduled for Jan. 19, 2023.

Around 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, police officers were called to the Clarion Hotel. The hotel is supposed to be vacant due to construction, but a 911 caller said someone may be living there.

When the officers arrived, they heard movement in one of the rooms, according to the police report. Hotel management gave officers a key card to enter the room, but the door was barricaded.

The police officers eventually forced their way into the room. Inside, they saw a man jump off the balcony and run toward Carl D. Silver Parkway, authorities said.

Three officers ran after the man while a fourth officer searched the hotel room and found drug paraphernalia, the police department said.

"After a lengthy foot pursuit that included the suspect swimming in a nearby drainage pond and crawling over 150 feet into a drainage pipe, the suspect was apprehended," the Fredericksburg Police Department said in a news release.