Police in Harford County said Thursday there is little chance that a man who escaped from the custody of correctional officers is still in Maryland, let alone in the county.
Terrance Kassis Washington, 31, escaped early Wednesday. He had recently been extradited to Maryland from Ohio to face multiple charges of second-degree assault, malicious destruction of property and theft. Washington is also wanted in at least five other states on charges of armed robbery and car theft, authorities said.
“We are checking several locations in several states where Washington is known to have ties,” said Lt. Jim Eyler of the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, which runs the county jail.
Washington told correctional officers at the Harford County Detention Center that he was coughing up blood, and he was rushed to the Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air shortly before 3 a.m. Wednesday. During the transport, he was able to free himself of handcuffs and leg and waist shackles. When deputies opened the car door to take him into the emergency room, Washington bolted into a nearby wooded area, Eyler said.
Investigators had focused on finding a Ford pickup stolen from Homestead Street in Bel Air about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday, which they believed Washington used as a getaway vehicle.
It was located Thursday behind a business on Abingdon Road.
Meanwhile, a red 200 Dodge pick-up truck was reported stolen from the 3200 block of Philadelphia Road in Abingdon. Virginia State Police discovered that vehicle along Interstate 85 in Mecklenburg County, Eyler said.
Washington has been featured on “America’s Most Wanted,” Eyler said in a press release Thursday.
“This guy has a long history of escaping. He is determined,” said a producer of the show, Sedg Tourison. Tourison said Washington has escaped from jail at least three times since 1989.
Tourison said “America’s Most Wanted,” which profiled Washington at least five times, would more than likely air another profile on the New Orleans native should he remain at large.
Eyler said state and federal authorities have been called into to assist in the manhunt.
