AUSTIN, Texas — After a vehicle and foot chase, police on Monday arrested a suspect accused of stealing several packages off of porches in a North Austin neighborhood – and he was finally caught hiding in a women's bathroom.
Police said they received a suspicious vehicle call at 5:15 p.m. from Pantherpaw Street. That caller reported there had been multiple package thefts in the area and they saw a man leaving with packages in hand in a silver SUV. They said he was wearing navy hoodie and also provided the license plate number.
While searching the area, police found the suspect's vehicle on the 7520 block of North Lamar stopped at a stop sign at Banyon Street. The officer said they observed the man's face before he turned right onto Lamar.
After turning on their police lights, police said the vehicle accelerated, evaded and eventually ran a stop sign at Sugaree Avenue and Easy Wind Drive. Officials said they lost sight of the suspect, who was later identified as Juan Evel Hernandez, 37, for a short period of time.
They later searched the parking garage at 811 W. St. Johns Avenue, where the suspect's vehicle was found parked on the top level. Witnesses said they saw the vehicle speeding through the garage and a man later exited and ran through the northwest stairway.
Later, the officer said they saw Hernandez enter a nearby grocery store. Upon approaching him, police said he turned away from the officer and began walking toward the back of the store and into the women's restroom. He was then taken into custody.
When police received the key to his vehicle, they found multiple packages inside with the shipping labels ripped off belonging to residents on Wildcat Pass and Easy Wind Drive.
Hernandez was charged with evading in a motor vehicle, a third-degree felony. His bond was set at $30,000.
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