HOULTON (AP) — A Louisiana sheriff ’s department has told a Maine city to keep an unmarked police cruiser that was driven 1,800 miles by a jail escapee.
Police say 43-year-old Benjamin Gottke, a jail kitchen worker, drove the 2002 Ford Crown Victoria to the Canadian border after escaping from the Tensas Parish Detention Center in Waterproof, La. He was arrested earlier this month after speeding away from a border crossing and abandoning the vehicle in Houlton.
The Bangor Daily News says Louisiana officials don’t want the car back. Houlton Police Chief Butch Asselin says it has nearly 170,000 miles on it but appears to be in good condition.
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