Prisoner at large after escaping from Texas hospital
Bellville Police Department
(BELLVILLE, Texas) — Police are searching for a prisoner who escaped custody while undergoing testing at a hospital in Bellville, Texas, on Thursday.
The inmate, Salvador Saucedo, has red hair and tattoos and isn’t handcuffed. He was wearing an orange shirt and blue pants when he escaped, according to the Bellville Police Department.
He is missing his front teeth and has face tattoos, according to the Austin County Sheriff’s Office.
Saucedo was in custody on charges of possession of a controlled substance, resisting arrest and assault on a peace officer, according to the Waller County Sheriff’s Office.
Saucedo escaped from custody at Bellville Hospital shortly after 7 p.m. on Thursday, police said.
He has not been seen since, according to law enforcement.
Authorities from the Bellville Police Department, Austin County Sheriff’s Office and Waller County Sheriff’s Office have multiple units searching for him, including K-9s, drones and a helicopter.
It is unknown if Saucedo is still in the Bellville area or not. Bellville is about an hour west of Houston.
Anyone who sees the suspect is being asked to call 911 or call the Waller County Sheriff’s Office at 979-826-8282 or the Austin County Sheriff’s Office at 979-865-3111.
(WASHINGTON) — Federal authorities are offering a $25,000 reward in connection with a series of arson incidents involving ballot boxes in Washington state and Oregon during early voting last month.
The FBI said Wednesday it is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying a suspect sought in three incendiary fires.
The agency is offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the suspect responsible.
The first incident occurred on Oct. 8 in Vancouver, Washington, when a ballot box was set on fire between 3:30 a.m. and 4 a.m. local time, the FBI said.
Then, on Oct. 28, ballot boxes in Vancouver and Portland were set on fire between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. local time, the FBI said. Hundreds of ballots were damaged in the Vancouver incident after a fire suppression device failed to work properly, officials said.
In all three incidents, an “improvised incendiary device” was placed on the ballot drop boxes, the FBI said.
The Portland incident was captured by a surveillance camera, including a vehicle driven by the suspect believed to be responsible for these crimes, the FBI said.
In a roughly 3-minute video released by the FBI, a vehicle can be seen stopping next to the ballot box, located on a sidewalk. The driver appears to light an item and pass it through the driver’s window, then drives away. Almost immediately after the vehicle departs, the ballot box begins smoking, then briefly sparking. Fire suppressants prevented further damage and protected nearly all the ballots, according to elections officials.
The vehicle was described by the FBI as an early 2003 to 2004 Volvo S-60 sedan, dark in color, with dark wheels and a light-colored interior. It does not have a Volvo logo on the front grill, the FBI said.
“At the time of the October 28, 2024, incidents, the vehicle also displayed a fraudulent temporary Washington license plate on the rear and no front license plate. The plate, which is not associated with a Volvo, may no longer be on the vehicle,” the FBI said.
The driver of the vehicle was described by the FBI as a white male, approximately 30 to 40 years old, with thinning hair.
“It is believed that he may have some experience with metal work and welding,” the FBI said.
The incendiary device used in the initial incident had “Free Gaza” and “Free Palestine” on it, two sources familiar with the ongoing investigation previously told ABC News. The two subsequent devices carried the slogan “Free Gaza,” according to the sources.
One of the sources told ABC News it was unclear whether these markings reflect the views of a pro-Palestine activist — or if it was an individual trying to manipulate existing divisions in the U.S.
ABC News’ Pierre Thomas contributed to this report.
(NEW ORLEANS , LA) — A suspect who was “hellbent” on killing as many people as possible drove a pickup truck around barricades and plowed his vehicle through a crowd of New Year’s revelers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans at a high rate of speed, leaving at least 10 dead and injuring dozens of others early Wednesday, city and federal officials said.
After mowing down numerous people over a three-block stretch on the famed thoroughfare while firing shots into the crowd, the suspect allegedly got out of the truck wielding an assault rifle and opened fire on police officers, law enforcement officials briefed on the incident told ABC News. Officers returned fire, killing the suspect who was not immediately identified, sources said. At least two police officers were shot and wounded, authorities said.
Explosive devices found in and around the scene on Bourbon Street were apparently found to be viable, multiple law enforcement sources tell ABC News.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell described the horrific incident a “terrorist attack” and the FBI said it was being investigated as an act of terror. The bloodshed comes on the heels of a deadly vehicle ramming attack in Germany. Fears of such attacks were a growing concern among law enforcement as well as attacks by lone actors at winter holiday events.
Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said the driver had attempted to kill as many people as possible. The truck used in the attack appeared to be a F-150 Lightning, an electric vehicle. A black flag appeared to be attached to the vehicle, but its significance was not immediately known.
By the time the melee — which was described by city officials as a “mass casualty incident” — had ended, at least 35 people were injured, New Orleans police and city officials said. Most of the victims appeared to be local, officials said.
“He was hellbent on creating the carnage that he did,” Kirkpatrick said at a news conference early Wednesday.
The New Orleans Police Department said the attack occurred despite the force being “staffed 100%” for New Year’s Eve and the Sugar Bowl, a college football game played annually on New Year’s Day. An additional 300 officers were on duty from partner agencies, the police department said.
President Joe Biden has been briefed on the attack and has been in touch with Cantrell to offer support, according to the White House.
“The FBI is already on the ground supporting local law enforcement in the investigation and the President will continue to be briefed throughout the day,” the White House said in a statement.
Local authorities asked the FBI for assistance early on Wednesday, a senior federal law enforcement source told ABC News. A command center was being set up, the source said. The FBI was set to lead the investigation.
“A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning,” Gov. Jeff Landry said, adding that his family was praying for the victims and first responders.
A witness, who requested to be identified only as Paul S., told ABC News he was startled awake by the sound of what he initially thought was fireworks.
“Around 3:15 [a.m.], we heard a ‘pop, pop, pop, pop’ sound followed by a sound that sounded like fireworks going off, like big fireworks all at once,” Paul S. said. “Then it turned out that was the crash.”
He said he looked outside his hotel window, he saw a chaotic scene with bodies strewn on the street below.
“What I was was if you can imagine a street with brick and whatnot littered all around the sidewalk, and then there were bodies laid up next to garbage cans and people rushing to give aid,” Paul S. said.
He said he observed a man who had been thrown from his wheelchair lying on the ground next to the truck involved in in the attack writhing in pain.
“There was also a body underneath a scissor lift,” Paul S. said.
Leading up to the holidays, federal law enforcement and intelligence had warned police around the country that low-tech vehicle ramming was a key area of concern and that they needed to prepare — and that was before the German Christmas market attack on Dec. 20, in which five people were killed and hundreds were injured.
In a Dec. 9 assessment for the Times Square New Year’s Eve celebration, federal and local agencies wrote: “We remain concerned about the use of vehicle ramming against high-profile outdoor events…Vehicle ramming has become a recurring tactic employed by threat actors in the West, marked by a continued interest by (terrorists, extremists) and lone offenders in targeting crowded pedestrian areas.”
“There are 30 injured patients that have been transported by NOEMS and 10 fatalities,” the city said, using an acronym for the New Orleans Emergency Medical Services.
The police later said at least 35 people were injured and taken to five local hospitals — University Medical Center, Touro Hospital, East Jefferson General Hospital, Ochsner Medical Center Jefferson Campus and Ochsner Baptist Campus.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
