A man who allegedly used a bathroom break to walk out of a Minnesota courtroom where he was waiting to learn his fate for second- and third-degree manslaughter charges has been arrested in Michigan, according to the FBI.
Michael Harlan, 29, managed the escape from the Hennepin County courthouse this March and an active warrant was issued for his arrest, court records reviewed by Law&Crime on Monday confirm.
His escape happened moments after he was accompanied into the courtroom by officers and his attorney and he allegedly asked if he could relieve himself, local Fox affiliate KMSP reported.
After he went to use the restroom, Harlan simply never returned.
Authorities said he was apprehended on Friday in Detroit.
Michael Harlan booking photo (via Hennepin County Sheriff).
A nonjury trial led to the Bloomington, Minnesota resident’s guilty verdicts for second- and third-degree manslaughter of Cole Linnell, a 29-year-old man who died of a drug overdose.
Harlan’s verdict was rendered by Hennepin County District Court Judge Juan Hoyos.
In a statement of probable cause leading to his initial arrest in September 2021, a Rogers Police Department officer said police were dispatched on a welfare check to Linnell’s home after the man’s family had been unable to reach him. When they got inside Linnell’s apartment, police found him deceased with drugs and his cell phone nearby.
“Three blue pills were discovered next to victim’s body, along with victim’s cell phone. The pills hard markings consistent with oxycodone, however, testing by the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension determined they contained fentanyl,” court records state.
Jean Thurmer, Linnell’s mother, told reporters after Harlan fled the courthouse in March that her son had struggled with drug addiction since suffering a sports injury as a young teen.
“He robbed my son of his life,” she said, adding that she wanted to see Harlan “in a jumpsuit.”
The Hennepin County Medical examiner ruled that Linnell’s cause of death was due to “mixed ethanol and fentanyl toxicity,” the probable cause statement notes.
Forensic analysis of Linnell’s cell phone by investigators also helped them establish that he likely purchased the fentanyl-laced drugs from Harlan while Harlan used the alias “Eric E.,” court records show.
“‘Eric E.’ appeared to document Victim’s acquisition of the fentanyl pills. Specifically, ‘Eric E.’ indicated on March 13, 2021, that they had ‘blues’ [street term for oxycodone/Percocet] for sale and arranged to meet with Victim in St. Paul,” police said.
GPS data on Linnell’s cellphone tracked him going to the location in St. Paul and later withdrawing $200 in cash from an ATM.
After learning “Eric E.” was Harlan by searching Linnell’s phone and text records, Harlan was arrested.
When he went to hear his verdict but walked out before that could happen, CBS reported that court staff said the reason was “unknown.”
It was Thurmer who told KMSP that she heard Harlan say he needed to use the bathroom before he just “walked out.”
Video of Harlan’s arrest on Friday in Michigan was first obtained by KMSP thanks to a neighbor’s home security camera.
Over a loudspeaker, FBI agents can be heard commanding Harlan to exit an apartment from their position in a parking lot.
Harlan is scheduled to appear in court again on Monday.
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