ARRIVED: The emergency squad has arrived from Oslo to assist in the search for the man. Photo: Tor Erik Schrøder, NTB scanpix
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The police in Agder continue the search for a man in his 50s who is on the run with a sawn-off shotgun. The man has been wanted all night and is considered potentially dangerous.
The police have ended the search in a specific forest area on Hægeland in Vennesla municipality on Monday afternoon. However, the search continues elsewhere.
– The search for the man continues, without us wanting to be specific on where we will apply, says the staff in the Agder police district in a press release.
According to the police, national assistance resources from Oslo through the emergency squad, the crisis and hostage dealer service and the helicopter service contributed to the search on Monday.
– Our goal is to arrest the wanted man, Sjustøl says on Monday afternoon.
In principle, the police do not believe that the man is dangerous to the public, unless he is pressured.
Earlier Monday, when they ended the search in the forest area, the police said:
– It is a cost-benefit assessment. We now consider it not sensible to spend such large resources on this. It has been a while since we last saw him physically now, says Audun Eide, operations manager in the Agder police district to VG.
The search for the man took place in a forest in Hægeland in Vennesla municipality. The police have had eye contact with the man several times and have fired warning shots, without being able to get control of him.
Wants him to get in touch
Now the police are moving on to intelligence and investigation to get hold of the man. At the same time, the police request that the man himself report to the police.
– We want him to get in touch. We will find him anyway, says Eide.
The police were first notified of an incident in Mandal around 9 pm on Sunday night. The man had then taken with him the woman in her 30s with whom he had previously had a relationship.
After a few hours of searching, the police arrived at an address in Hægeland. There was a confrontation between the perpetrator and the police. VG receives confirmation from several sources that the man is said to have sought out an acquaintance, who asked him to leave the place.
Police fired a warning shot, but the perpetrator fled on foot. The man had a sawn-off shotgun with him, but did not shoot back. The offended woman is described as severely beaten, and has possible fractures. She is receiving treatment at Sørlandet hospital.
—Photo: Kristian van Pelt / Lindesnes Avis
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Previously convicted
As recently as May this year, the man was sentenced to eight months in prison for several violations of the Road Traffic Act and driving while intoxicated. The man also has several sentences from Kristiansand District Court related to drugs and intoxication.
According to the local newspaper Vennesla Tidende The man has also in a previous case been involved in armed action with the police. According to the newspaper, the affair took place back in 2016 when the man was involved in a traffic accident and fled the scene. The man had then been on the run from prison for some time.
