Robbery Detectives booked Taysean J. Nash, 21, into the Multnomah County Detention Center on charges of Robbery in the First Degree, Robbery in the Second Degree, and Unauthorized Use of a Vehicle. A passenger in the vehicle, Rhachelle H. Cotton, 25, was also booked into jail on charges of Robbery in the First Degree, Robbery in the Second Degree, and Unauthorized Use of a Vehicle. The gun, believed to be the one used in the carjacking, was recovered from the car (photo). It was a BB gun that was virtually indistinguishable from a real firearm unless it was closely inspected.
On Tuesday, August 31, 2021 at 7:22a.m., East Precinct Officers responded to a call of suspicious circumstances in a parking lot in the 9200 block of Southeast Stark Street. As they were enroute they learned that a victim of an armed carjacking was the caller and located their vehicle that had been taken at gunpoint earlier in the morning.
Officers located the vehicle and saw that it was leaving the parking lot. The officers tried to stop the vehicle but the driver started to drive away. Officers used their vehicles to surround and stop the car. The driver, who was believed to be the robbery suspect, got out and ran into the neighborhood. Officers set up a perimeter around the area.
Officers from SERT took the suspect into custody at 11:42 a.m. He was located hiding in a crawlspace under a house near Southeast 92nd Avenue and Southeast Alder Street. Detectives are continuing the investigation and his name will be released after he is booked. A handgun has also been seized as evidence.
The Community Emergency Notification is lifted and people are able to move freely in the neighborhood again. PPB is grateful to community members for their patience and understanding as officers searched for the suspect.
Portland’s community notification system is called PublicAlerts. Visit www.publicalerts.org to sign up. PublicAlerts sends information by text, email, and voice message about how to stay safe during an emergency.