Update Oct. 25, 10:00 a.m.: The suspect in Tuesday night’s search in Caroline has been taken into custody Wednesday morning.
Christopher Borges was located on Deerfield Lane in Caroline and taken into custody without incident, according to Sheriff Derek Osborne. He is being charged with first-degree robbery, second-degree kidnapping and first-degree criminal contempt.
Borges was found in the same area where the search was being conducted late Tuesday night.
Osborne thanked police from Ithaca, New York State, Cayuga Heights and the sheriff’s office. He also thanked the Ithaca City School District for navigating travel for students and the Celebrations Banquet Hall for letting police use their property as a command post, Osborne said.
Update 12:30 a.m.: Police have “scaled back the search” for Christopher Borges, a suspect in an armed robbery in Binghamton who was last seen fleeing into a wooded area in the town of Caroline. Units remain on scene near the area of the 2000 block of Slaterville Road to monitor.
Tompkins County Sheriff Derek Osborne said police are unsure if Borges is armed. A BB gun was found in the vehicle Borges fled.
Update 10:03 p.m.: There are dozens of police officers searching for the suspect on Slaterville Road in Caroline. As of 9 p.m., the search appeared to focus on the 2000 block of Slaterville Road, particularly a field on the south side of the road between Landon Road and Deerfield Lane.
Around 10 p.m., Tompkins County Sheriff Derek Osborne released a description of the suspect, Christopher Borges of Binghamton. Borges, 30, is a white man around 5’10” and 160 lbs.
The alert to stay inside has been extended to a five-mile radius around the area of the search, Osborne said. A drone is being utilized in the search.
Original story:
CAROLINE, N.Y.—Local police are pursuing a suspect in a wooded area in the town of Caroline for an incident that began in Broome County, according to Tompkins County Sheriff Derek Osborne. Police believe the suspect may be armed.
The incident apparently began with an armed robbery earlier Tuesday in Binghamton, during which a UHaul truck was used. To evade Broome County police, the suspect drove the truck toward Tompkins County, traveling westbound on Slaterville Road/Route 79 toward Ithaca.
Police ordered spike strips to be set up along Route 79 close to the city line, but the vehicle ran off the road before it reached the city. According to police, the UHaul operator drove into a pasture and stopped in the vicinity of Caroline Elementary School.
Sheriff Derek Osborne said the person fled into a wooded area in the 2000 block of Slaterville Road. An alert has been issued for residents in that area to remain indoors.
A woman was also in the car with the man, but her involvement is unclear and it does not appear she ran after the vehicle stopped in the pasture. An ambulance was called for the woman, but her injuries were not disclosed.
Osborne said police are conducting a search and have called in the Ithaca-Tompkins Specialized Response Team, formerly called the SWAT team.
Osborne declined to provide a description of the suspect but said more information would be provided as the situation develops.