Police in Troutdale used a distraction device creating a loud boom that may have rattled some residents to arrest a wanted man on Friday, March 15.
Austin Lee Hoover, 21, of Gresham reportedly drove away from his home in the 2200 block of Southeast Seventh Street at 11:30 a.m. when members of the East Metro SWAT Team served a search warrant, said Sgt. Carey Kerr, Troutdale Police spokesman. Officers followed Hoover on Southwest 257th Drive, and stayed behind him as he turned onto Hensley Road. Because it's a less populated area, police determined it would be a safer location to deploy what's called a distraction device something akin to a hand grenade that creates a loud noise and a flash to act as a diversion.
A loud boom echoed in the neighborhood, Kerr said, causing alarm for some residents.
But the device worked and police took Hoover into custody at 12:30 p.m. without further incident.
Hoover has been released on his own recognizance after being booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on allegations of cocaine possession and delivery, first-degree forgery, manufacturing marijuana and first-degree theft by deception.