Kent Driscoll
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (May 27/05) - A man who bolted from police as he was being taken into the courthouse enjoyed a few minutes of freedom and caused a bit of excitement in a city neighbourhood.

The man had been arrested the night before on an outstanding warrant. Police were escorting him to court to appear before a Justice of the Peace when he escaped and fled on foot at 6:50 p.m., Tuesday.

Grant Gon was standing in the walkway beside his 45th Street house, four blocks away from the courthouse, when he met the handcuffed fugitive.

"He just ran by me, I didn't know what was going on," said Gon.

Minutes later, the RCMP drove up to Doornbos Park, across the street from the rear of the Gon home.

Evelyn McLeod also lives on 45th Street and noticed a man hiding behind the small garden shed in her front yard.

She asked him to leave and waved toward the front gate with her arm.

"That signalled to the RCMP that he was in my yard. I didn't even know they were around," said McLeod.

The man then ran into her backyard. She rushed to her back kitchen in time to see an RCMP officer tackle the fugitive.

The suspect was taken to Stanton Territorial Hospital and treated for a cut to his face.

The RCMP officer injured his knee in the capture.

"This is the most excitement we've had here," said McLeod, who has lived on 45th Street for 16 years.

Jamie Mike, 24, has been charged with escaping from lawful custody.