Document text
Two arrested, one drug fugitive escapes in Grants Pass SWAT team standoff Saturday Jan 28, 2017 at 12:01 AM By Jeff Duewel Grants Pass Daily Courier GRANTS PASS — Two people were arrested, and one drug fugitive escaped, during a daylong standoff at a west Grants Pass home on Wednesday. The escaped fugitive, Ty Ray Nunes, 34, escaped again late Wednesday, this time from Oregon State Police, in the 4800 block of Cloverlawn Drive. He and three others, who had been in a car, fled on foot. Meanwhile, the original standoff started shortly after 8 a.m. Wednesday with a parking complaint at a home on Lower River Road behind 940 Doneen Lane in west Grants Pass. Police found a stolen Honda Accord with stolen license plates and a stolen gun inside, then noticed a man run into the back of the home on Doneen Lane. He was identified as Nunes, who has multiple warrants for arrest and a history of eluding law enforcement. Officers removed three people from the house in the morning, according to Grants Pass police Lt. Todd Moran. One of them, Kelly Lynn Duncan, 23, owner of the home, was jailed on heroin possession charges. Two others were not jailed. Once a search warrant was obtained, with Nunes presumed inside, the SWAT team was called in. Doneen Lane was blocked on both ends. "Anytime there's a search warrant with a drug house with a known fugitive, that's what triggers the response from the SWAT team," Moran said. The SWAT team arrived, and at 1:19 p.m., Deanna Lee Rayburn, 43, of Grants Pass came out and was arrested on two warrants for failure to appear for meth possession. Another man came out but was not arrested, Moran said. Nunes was presumably still inside, and the police presence did not end for another five hours. "Flashbangs" made loud booms at least three times between 3:45 and 4:15 p.m., and multiple officers trained weapons at the residence. Balls containing pepper spray were also shot into the house. The SWAT vehicle was moved from the street to the front lawn of the home, and a ladder was placed on a fence. But Nunes was gone. Officers believed he ran off early on in the investigation. Moran said after no reaction from loudspeakers, flashbangs and pepper balls, eventually officers went inside and searched the home. Nunes was later spotted in the Cloverlawn area, but escaped on foot. State troopers attempted to set up a perimeter and requested a police dog from Grants Pass police, but lack of resources thwarted that effort, Moran said. "We wouldn't send out one officer and one dog to go after a dangerous criminal," Moran said this morning. "It would take more resources than were available." Moran also said, "We've had complaints with drug activity at this house. That's pretty typical of folks running in those circles, using drugs and stealing property." Anyone with more information on this matter is urged to call the Grants Pass Department of Public Safety at 541-450-6260.