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Kidnapping Suspect Arrested In NoHo After Evading Police During Search

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Police arrested a 31-year-old kidnapping suspect after he evaded authorities in the Los Angeles area.

Jesus Ramirez, who was wanted in connection with a drug case and kidnapping earlier in the year in St. Paul, Minn., was taken into custody late Thursday afternoon at the Pepper Tree Motel on Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood, the FBI's Laura Eimiller said.

"Our task force had been assisting with surveillance on this suspect that had started in Minnesota by the St. Paul police and had tracked him to Boyle Heights earlier today. That's when that pursuit began," Eimiller said.

A chase started about 12:45 p.m. at the corner of Vermont and Francis in the Boyle Heights area.

Ramirez, who was driving a burgundy Ford Expedition with Nebraska license plates, then led authorities to the area of Broadway and Eighth Street in downtown, where he hit a car, got out of the vehicle and ran into an alley near the Orpheum Theatre.

"He escaped downtown by running into that building to hide," Eimiller said.

Police set up a perimeter in the area and searched for about one hour before determining the suspect had fled, according to CBS2's Dave Lopez.

"It took a couple of hours to pick up his trail again, but we tracked him to North Hollywood and arrested him at that motel," Eimiller said, adding that she believed that Ramirez, who claimed to be a resident of Los Angeles, had been indicted in Minnesota.

(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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