As escape plans go, this one was lacking.
Police confronted 27-year-old Timofey Erofeeff about prowling around without permission on moored boats at North Tongue Point, Oregon. When they approached him, Erofeeff leapt into his red Ford F-150 pickup and sped away down a pier, reported The Daily Astorian.
Unfortunately for the 27-year-old Scotts Mills resident, he wasn’t aimed toward the landward end.
In a spectacular show of poor judgment, Erofeeff sped right off the end of the pier and into the frigid Columbia River.
Erofeeff tried to swim away, but the cold water and swift current defeated him.
He couldn’t cross the river, and he would have frozen to death if he stayed in the water, so he swam back to shore.
When he reached the pier, he couldn’t even climb back up—the pier was too tall.
Erofeeff’s truck sails off the pier into the Columbia River. (Screenshot WRIC News)Police threw the freezing man a life preserver and planned his rescue, FoxNews reported.
The police called the Coast Guard and prepped a helicopter should it be needed.
Luckily for Erofeeff, employees from a local shipbuilding firm, WCT Marine & Construction Inc., sailed up in a small craft and pulled the hapless prowler out of the water. They might well have saved his life.
After only 20 minutes in the freezing water, the would-be escape artist had to be transported to Columbia Memorial Hospital to be treated for hypothermia.
“I’m thankful the men from WCT Marine and fishing vessel (Pacific Wind) were there and willing to help,” Astoria Deputy Police Chief Eric Halverson told The Daily Astorian. “Mr. Erofeeff should be thankful too.”
Timofey Erofeeff in his booking photos from Clackamas County Jail (L) from Oct. 13, 2017 and from the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office from Aug. 10, 2017. (http://crimeinformer.com)From the hospital, Erofeeff went straight to jail. He was booked into Clatsop County Jail on charges of violating parole, second-degree criminal trespass, interfering with a police officer, attempt to elude a police officer, reckless driving and third-degree escape, ABC8 reported.
He had prior arrests in Clackamas County and Deschutes County for burglary, identity theft, and probation violation.
Erofeef’s truck is still at the bottom of the Columbia River. Deputy Chief Halverson said his office was in contact with the Coast Guard about retrieving the vehicle but “It’s in the river for now.”
From NTD.tv
