PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland police have identified the suspect they arrested Tuesday morning for allegedly committing several armed robberies along North Interstate Avenue in the Overlook neighborhood.
After several hours of searching, officers took 18-year-old Luis Santiago into custody. He is charged with two counts of assault in the second degree. Portland police said additional charges are expected.
Police officers responded to the intersection of North Interstate Avenue and North Going Street just before 5:30 a.m. and learned that Santiago committed at least four different armed robberies along Interstate Avenue during a short period of time, according to the Portland Police Bureau.
Santiago shot a handgun several times during the course of one of the robberies, PPB said, but no one was injured. During another robbery, Santiago assaulted several people, according to PPB. One of the victims was treated at the hospital but is expected to survive.
Officers asked residents in the immediate area to shelter in place as PPB's Special Emergency Reaction Team (SERT) and Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT) worked to locate the suspect. Officers set up a perimeter from North Colonial to North Concord, and from North Going Court to North Blandena Street.
"Almost instantaneously what seemed like the entire police force arrived around the block and it was only then I realized this guy was wanted," said a man named Doug, a longtime resident of the Overlook neighborhood.
Doug told KGW that his home security cameras captured the wanted man running to where he was eventually found, in the overgrown backyard of a vacant home near the corner of North Going Court and Colonial Avenue.
A KGW photojournalist who was at the scene reported around 8:30 a.m. that police had taken the suspect into custody. PPB confirmed that the suspect was in custody in a news release sent to KGW around 8:40 a.m.
"He looked to be fairly young," Doug said. "Not very tall."
Traffic in the area was impacted for several hours and drivers were asked to find alternative routes. By 8:40 a.m., PPB said, streets were slowly reopening.
Detectives believe there could be more victims. Anyone with information about Santiago or the robberies is asked to contact PPB's non-emergency number at 503-823-3333 or email crimetips@police.portlandoregon.gov and reference case number 23-155374.