Man jumps from Dan Ryan Expressway during police pursuit, hides on top of support pillar
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A police chase on the Dan Ryan Expressway Wednesday night led to a suspect jumping from the elevated stretch of expressway - and hiding at the top of a set of concrete support pillars where he landed.
As CBS 2's Charlie De Mar reported, a SWAT team used a Chicago fire truck to climb up and find the man.
Officers began pursuing the 30-year-old man – who was driving a Jeep – in the 4300 block of South Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Bronzeville. Police did not specify why officers started pursuing the man, but it was reported that he had struck a squad car.
The man got onto the Dan Ryan and hit multiple vehicles on the expressway, police said.
He then got out of the Jeep and ran.
Police radio traffic indicated the man ran across traffic, and then ran south on the shoulder of the northbound lanes, according to dispatch audio.
High above 16th Street, the man jumped.
Chicago Police were actively looking for the suspect after he jumped. They found him wedged on top a row of pillars that supports the Dan Ryan beneath the 18th Street entrance ramp in East Pilsen.
Once Chicago police zeroed in on the pillars, the SWAT team went up. But they were unable to pull the man down.
The rescue attempt brought out neighbors - and even caught the attention of fellow officers, who watched from the sidewalk.
"There was clearly some sort of manhunt going on, and then eventually, someone posted that – they were shining a light down there," a witness said. "It was someone from the bridge that jumped off."
Next up, The Chicago Fire Department went up to the top of the support pillars with a stretcher.
It took several trips up in a CFD ladder finally to pull the man down. But after some maneuvering, first responders succeeded.
Meanwhile, ramps were closed.
After the unique manhunt, Chicago Police took the man into custody. He was wearing a neck brace as he was quickly loaded into a waiting ambulance.
"Clearly, we saw him get put in the ambulance. He had a neck brace on – lying flat," the witness said. "So I don't know if it was the jump or something else, but clearly, he was quite injured."
Multiple guns – including a rifle – and various drugs were found in the Jeep the man abandoned, police said.
The man was taken to Stroger Hospital of Cook County for observation.
