Man arrested 2 weeks after escaping from Pittsburgh hospital following police chase

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — A man who escaped from a Pittsburgh hospital after being arrested following a high-speed chase is back in custody after two weeks, police said.

Mark Clements III, 19, of McKees Rocks, was arrested Monday after police were called to a crash at East Eighth Avenue and McClure Street in Munhall.

Clements falsely identified himself twice to officers who responded to the crash, according to a criminal complaint. A gun that was reported stolen was found under the passenger seat.

Clements and a passenger in the car were arrested. Charges against Clements include carrying a firearm without a license, false identification to law enforcement and receiving stolen property.

On May 8, Clements had been arrested following a high-speed police chase involving a vehicle that was wanted in the shooting of an 11-year-old. He was later reported missing after he walked out of UPMC Mercy Hospital, Penn Hills Police Chief Howard Burton confirmed on May 10.

Clements had been taken to the hospital after his arrest stemming from the police chase, which ended in a crash in Penn Hills.

According to a criminal complaint, Penn Hills police saw a vehicle that was being driven with a black garbage bag over a side window. When police ran the registration, they found that the vehicle was wanted by Pittsburgh police for allegedly being involved in the shooting of the child on May 7.

>>STORY: 11-year-old shot in Pittsburgh’s Upper Hill District, caught between gunfire

When police attempted to pull over the vehicle, it was driven away at high speed, sometimes going over 90 mph, police said. The pursuit ended near the intersection of Verona Road and Coal Hollow Road when the vehicle crashed into another vehicle and rolled over.

Clements was identified as the driver and was pulled from the vehicle with the help of a K-9 officer.

“Why was he going that way for a traffic violation? What was the deal in his mind? We have no idea, but, needless to say, he was putting a lot of people in danger,” Burton said.

Police said the shooting that the vehicle was linked to happened around 5:45 p.m. Friday in the 700 block of Anaheim Street in Pittsburgh’s Upper Hill neighborhood. The child who was hurt was taken by family members to a local hospital and was listed in stable condition.

No charges are yet filed in the shooting incident.

Clements III was charged with felony fleeing, misdemeanor resisting arrest and several traffic violations after Saturday’s police chase and crash.

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