Philadelphia police looking for suspect who escaped custody following a traffic stop
Nafiysh Knox-Schenck escaped from a patrol car while handcuffed on Monday morning, authorities said.
Philadelphia police are looking for a suspect who escaped from custody in East Germantown Monday morning.
Police pulled over Nafiysh Knox-Schenck, 32, on the unit block of Collum Street around 10 a.m. for an open warrant for firearms charges, authorities said. Officers recovered a firearm from Knox-Schenck during the stop, and placed him under arrest.
After handcuffing Knox-Schenck, responding officers placed him in the rear of a patrol car. He was able to escape from the vehicle after an unknown person opened the patrol car’s door, allowing him to flee on foot, police said.
Officers chased after Knox-Schenck eastbound on Collum Street, but were unable to catch up with him.
Knox-Schenck’s escape from police custody is one of several in the last several months.
In February, Alleem Borden, 29, escaped from Episcopal Hospital on East Lehigh Avenue after being taken into custody for vehicle theft. He complained of pain and was taken to the hospital, where he escaped while being discharged after treatment. U.S. marshals apprehended Borden days later in Cambria County, about 200 miles from Philadelphia.
And in January, Shane Pryor, 17, escaped from police custody during a medical visit to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Pryor was charged with killing a woman in 2020, and had been taken to the hospital by juvenile detention center staff due to an injury to his hand. Days after his escape, marshals apprehended Pryor near Third Street and Roosevelt Boulevard after spotting him on a SEPTA bus.
Authorities asked that anyone with information about Knox-Schenck’s location call 911. Members of the public should not approach him, officials said.