Pr. George's Escapee Is Tied to Car Theft Ring

An alleged car thief who escaped from police custody and prompted a five-hour manhunt yesterday in Prince George's County had been a target of a months-long investigation into a car theft ring stretching from the Washington area to the west coast of Africa, according to a law enforcement source.

The man, identified by police as Kamara Mohamed, escaped about 3:15 a.m. after he overpowered a state trooper at Laurel Regional Hospital and fled in a hospital gown armed with her .40-caliber handgun, authorities said. He was recaptured about a mile away when he emerged apparently unarmed from a trailer near a new subdivision on Contee Road near Route 1 about 8:30 a.m.

Several other people were arrested in recent days in connection with the alleged car theft operation, which investigators believe has shipped more than 1,000 luxury vehicles to Ghana and Nigeria in the past 18 months, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is continuing.

On Sunday, two men were arrested in Harford County after they allegedly stole a 2005 Chevy Monte Carlo from a dealership, said Greg Shipley, a Maryland State Police spokesman. Shipley said the men, whose names were not released, had not been charged late yesterday afternoon but were in custody.

Mohamed, 39, was first arrested about noon Monday after he entered a public storage space in the 3200 block of Kenilworth Avenue in Hyattsville. Police recovered two stolen 2008 Nissan sport-utility vehicles from the storage space, Shipley said.

Mohamed was taken by ambulance to the hospital about 8 p.m. Monday after he complained of chest pains. Early yesterday, Mohamed attacked the trooper as she stood guard in his fourth-floor room, grabbing her police-issued weapon and fleeing, authorities said.

The trooper, whose name was not released and who has been with the state police for three years, was badly beaten by Mohamed but chased him down a stairwell and through the hospital, police said. He ran out of the hospital with the trooper following. Outside, he threatened to kill her and fired several shots before escaping, police said. The trooper was not hit.

As the sky grew lighter yesterday and a steady rain fell, police in SWAT gear took over the neighborhood around the hospital, just east of Interstate 95 and south of Sandy Spring Road in the 7300 block of Van Dusen Road.

Van Dusen Road was closed to traffic in front of the hospital during the morning rush, starting at Contee Road. Troopers, assisted by Prince George's police, stopped motorists to search their cars. Helicopters buzzed overhead as students who normally travel by bus to nearby Laurel High School were taken to Greenbelt Middle School, several miles away.

Police found Mohamed hiding in the trailer off Contee Road after a resident reported seeing someone suspicious. Dressed in a gray hooded sweat shirt, he was taken back to the hospital, where he was examined, and then was taken to the Prince George's jail, Shipley said.

A search of the area turned up a hospital gown and the trooper's handgun, police said.

Late yesterday, federal investigators were working to clear up several questions about Mohamed's background. Shipley said authorities believe that Mohamed, who initially gave police a false name, has used several aliases, including Mohamed Kamara. Immigration officials were trying to establish whether Kamara was in the country legally.

Shipley said the arrests Sunday led to raids at several locations in Maryland, including the Hyattsville storage space, where police recovered the two Nissans, a 2008 Jaguar and three late-model Toyota SUVs.

Yesterday afternoon, the trooper remained in treatment at the hospital, where she was expected to be kept overnight for observation.

State police charged Mohamed with first- and second-degree burglary, theft over $500, conspiracy to commit burglary, conspiracy to commit theft over $500 and unlawful taking of a motor vehicle. He was not charged yesterday in the assault on the trooper.