City police seek man who escaped while wearing handcuffs

YOUNGSTOWN — Police are searching for a man who escaped in handcuffs early Saturday morning on the East Side.

Reports said officers Michael Cox and Russell Davis were called about 6:20 a.m. to a home in the 1500 block of Woodcrest Avenue for a woman who said her boyfriend had come home drunk, punched her in the face several times and then went to sleep with her 2-year-old child. She waited until the man fell asleep until she called police, reports said.

Reports said an additional officer, Robert Martini, was called to help and the three went upstairs and woke the man up. The man struggled and told police he did nothing wrong but officers managed to get him cuffed and also found clothes for him, reports said.

However, when they tried to put the man in a cruiser, reports said he managed to wriggle free and run away.

The officers chased him through several streets and found a set of footprints in the snow in the 800 block of Cassius Avenue but they could not find the man.

Because of the cold weather officers searched for two hours but could not find the man, reports said.