Although fugitive Gage Michael Wood eluded law enforcement once again on Tuesday by jumping out of his girlfriend's moving car, city police nabbed the 18-year-old woman and charged her with hindering apprehension and prosecution - a felony.
McKenzie Rose Morean showed no emotion during her arraignment at city police headquarters until District Judge Jon E. Kemp set her bail at $75,000.
Tears started streaming down the teen's face as she sat in disbelief. She repeated the amount in the form of a question again and again.
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MOREAN
Moments earlier, the arresting officer, Patrolman Thomas E. Bortz, told the judge that Wood's second escape was a "volatile situation" because the man is believed to be armed with stolen firearms that were taken in a burglary last week in Old Lycoming Township.
The latest drama unfolded about 1:30 p.m. when Bortz and Patrolman Jason Dockey, riding together in a marked police cruiser, spotted Wood, 18, in a Ford Taurus being driven by Morean in the 600 block of Campbell Street.
The officers were aware that Wood, of 913 Poplar St., was wanted for breaking into a home on Deckman Hollow Road in the township on Friday.
In an affidavit, Bortz said that when Morean spotted the cruiser, she tried to get away by speeding up and turning onto side streets, eventually making her way to the 800 block of Memorial Avenue, where Wood jumped out.
Other officers swarmed into the neighborhood and began an extensive effort to locate the fugitive, but were unsuccessful. Police stopped Morean's car in the area of Seventh and Park avenues. Bortz said that the woman told them she knew her boyfriend was a fugitive.
Wood, who also is wanted on a felony drug warrant, is believed to be armed and dangerous, police said. Anyone who knows his whereabouts is asked to call police at 329-4060.
He was last seen Friday running into the woods near the remote scene of the burglary. A second man who is alleged to committed the burglary with Wood was nabbed and automatically jailed on a detainer. His identity has not been released.
Unable to post her bail, Morean, of 745 Arch St., was taken from police headquarters and committed to the Lycoming County Prison.
