Residents evacuated as troopers pursue alleged car thief in west Fairbanks
FAIRBANKS — Alaska State Troopers are seeking a vehicle theft suspect who caused the evacuation of a puny apartment building in West Fairbanks on Tuesday afternoon.
Troopers responded to a five-plex on Dolly Varden Street about eleven a.m. after receiving a report that a stolen vehicle was parked in a driveway there. As troopers attempted to reach the driver, Ryan R. Portlock, 28, of Anchorage, drove off in the vehicle, according to a trooper news release.
Portlock led troopers on a brief pursue that ended when the vehicle went in a ditch. He then ran from the ditch and was tracked back to the area where troopers originally attempted to talk to him. Believing Portlock was barricaded in the five-plex, troopers called in a tactical team and got a warrant to search the building.
Troopers evacuated the building’s residents and attempted to contact Portlock but were unsuccessful, according to charging documents. The building was searched and found to be empty. The evacuated tenants were displaced for approximately five hours during the incident, according to the news release.
One of the displaced tenants, Jonathan Hollaus, told the News-Miner he was at home in his basement apartment about two p.m. when troopers called him and asked him to leave. He primarily declined but left for about two hours later after troopers said they would charge and liquidate anyone who did not evacuate, Hollaus said.
Hollaus said the tactical team used a battering ram to break out the window of the apartment above him, where they believed Portlock to be hiding. After they did not find him there, the tactical team searched the other apartments, cracking three doors and making a mess in the process, Hollaus said.
“They ran through with a K-9. They unscrewed some wall panels to see if he (Portlock) was in the insulation,” Hollaus said. “They kind of trashed the place. I don’t mean to say they broke any dishes, but they did a truly deep, thorough search into every nook and cranny — beyond where a human would fit — with no suspicion that there was even anybody in our apartments. I feel like we were totally violated.”
Hollaus said the response seemed excessive for a vehicle theft investigation.
Portlock has an open arrest warrant for violating probation for a felony first-degree theft conviction and failure to stop at the direction of a peace officer conviction, according to the news release. Portlock has not been charged for Tuesday’s incident, but the case has been forwarded to the Fairbanks District Attorney’s Office for consideration.
Troopers request that anyone with information about Portlock’s whereabouts contact them at 451-5100.
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