Harris County deputies searching for man who escaped custody at Clay Road substation

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- A search got underway Monday evening for a man who removed his handcuffs and ran off from a substation, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

The man, identified as Braden Findley, 20, was taken into custody for violating a protective order and retaliation. The only descriptor deputies gave was that he's a Black male.

A deputy was escorting him into the substation at 16715 Clay Road at about 4:48 p.m., when he managed to slip out of his handcuffs and take off, the sheriff's office said in a tweet.

Deputies shut down traffic on Pine Forest Lane from Clay Road to Highway 6 as they began searching for the suspect. It's an area adjacent to Bear Creek Park.

A law enforcement helicopter, K9s and deputies are on the hunt.

The call originated at 2:28 p.m. at a home in the 2300 block of Wigmaker for a terroristic threat. The department said there is no danger to the public and he's not believed to be armed, but neighbors who live near the search area were checking their doors and windows.

"I hope something happens soon, that they catch him because otherwise it's going to be hard for me to sleep," neighbor Bertha Esmeralda Garcia said.

The sheriff's office said it plans to work overnight to look for Findley.

During a news conference, HCSO Major Earl Dean said the suspect "manipulated" the handcuffs to escape. A review of the incident will be launched, he said.

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