Escaped prisoner was in custody for a shooting in Southwest Philadelphia, police say

A prisoner who escaped from police custody on Tuesday was captured after several hours on the run in West Philadelphia.

Police said the 26-year-old was being transferred from Penn Presbyterian Medical Center around 10:20 a.m. when he escaped. According to police, the prisoner was arrested in connection with a shooting that happened on the 2100 block of South 57th Street earlier in the morning.

CBS News Philadelphia saw officers arrest the man around 1:20 p.m. Police have not released details about how the suspect was able to get away from officers during the transfer. He also has yet to be identified.

"That's what we're still trying to look into, and the investigation will be pending with that," Philadelphia Police Department Inspector Kpana Massaquoi said.

Officers initially focused their search for the man from 37th to 38th and Baring streets in the city's West Powelton section earlier in the morning. The escaped prisoner spent nearly three hours on the run and managed to evade police multiple times, shirtless and with one of his hands still cuffed.

Officers, some dressed in tactical gear, were seen scaling fences in the area. Police K-9s and drones were also deployed in the search.

Kevin Walker, a witness, said he was face-to-face with the escaped prisoner and briefly interacted with him at one point. 

"You could tell he was definitely weary," Walker said. "He was looking weird. And then he asked me to go ask the dude at the corner if I could tell him to come over here for a ride."

Walker said he didn't even have time to respond before more than a dozen police officers swarmed the scene and tackled the fugitive, who tried to take off.

"We just kinda froze and then bang, he was on the move again, running. So it was one of the more surreal things that's happened around here lately, I would say," Walker said.

The Powelton neighborhood where to escaped prisoner was on the run is relieved he's back in custody.

"These officers took care of business as they normally should have," Dane Gentels, a Drexel student, said. "They took care of business, they were very organized. They surrounded the area. This guy was not escaping. This guy was just not escaping."